


Super Mario: Star Eater

by saturnalius



Category: Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: Adventure, Cosmic elements, Mushroom Kingdom, Mystery, Sarasaland, Unlikely Hero
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-26
Updated: 2018-09-26
Packaged: 2019-07-17 07:54:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 47,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16091312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saturnalius/pseuds/saturnalius
Summary: The dust had finally settled after Bowser's last attempt at taking over. The kingdoms of Mushroom World would finally see some happiness as Daisy finally prepares for her perfect wedding. But peace is short lived in the World as an ancient being makes the planet its next target, swallowing Peach and Daisy's closest friends and threatening everyone's existence.Can Daisy and her ragtag band of heroes save their missing friends against some galactic monstrosity that is threatening to eat their world? Or could this be the final battle the Mushroom World will ever see?





	1. In the shadows of a celebration

The lands of the Mushroom World felt peaceful, for once. Bowser had retreated back to his land after the last bitter defeat, taking his Koopa Troop with him. This left the Mushroom Kingdom to some more peaceful times, despite Bowser's recent attempt to overthrow the place. The sky was blue, dotted only by a few happy clouds drifting in the subtle breeze. Flowers had begun to rebloom in the warm spring air.

 

Peach stood at the castle entrance, watching her toad people bustle about on the busy streets nearby. They had busied themselves with rebuilding the toad houses which had gotten crushed in the most recent siege by Bowser. Peach had generously funded the rebuilding projects, paying for all materials and supplies needed so that no toad would go without a house. She certainly couldn't have any of her people homeless. Several yoshi had arrived to help with the heavy lifting, and even some native koopa troopas had shown up to help with the effort.

 

The last few months felt a bit lonely, despite all the company and rebuilding. Mario and Luigi had left the castle to help rebuild other parts of the Kingdom, and Daisy had returned to Sarasaland to take care of business on her end. Her only companion who remained was a single Luma who stayed by her side.

 

"Peach! PEEEAAAACH!" The words echoed across the courtyard. Peach looked up to see Daisy running up the walkway pulling her dress and several layers of petticoats up with her hands so she wouldn't trip in the process. Unlike Peach, Daisy tended to not act very lady like, running like a maniac in her formal dress and heels.

 

"It's so good to see you, Daisy!" Peach exclaimed, clapping her hands together excitedly and delicately. It had been lonely without her excitable friend around. True, Peach had been busy with the restoration of Toad Town, but it was always nice to have her companion to keep her company. It kept things from getting too lonely or sad.

 

Daisy reached Peach and pulled off her glove, holding out her hand proudly. On her ring finger was a new ring, somewhat masculine, featuring an engraved vine-like pattern with yellow diamonds embedded into engraved flowers. The ring suited Daisy's tomboyish nature, being rather smooth so she could wear it all the time and not ruin it playing sports or gardening. "Tada!"

 

"Oh my!" Peach exclaimed, taking Daisy's hand to get a better look. "That's gorgeous!" Daisy wasn't the type to wear rings, so this certainly had to be something special and important. "Did Luigi finally propose?" It was the only logical conclusion, though Luigi was far too reserved and shy to do something like that. Perhaps Mario had encouraged him to do it. The two did deserve to be together and finally be happy.

 

"Ha!" Daisy laughed loudly. "He didn't propose. _I did._ " She proudly placed her other hand on her hip. It was a triumph in her book. She wasn't really the traditional type, waiting for Luigi to propose. She took the initiative and did it herself. Luigi had no hesitation in accepting the proposal. He wanted to be with her as much as she with him. He simply couldn't put it into words, so Daisy did it for him.

 

Peach placed a hand over her mouth to delicately laugh. How typical this was of Daisy. She really should've expected it. "That's wonderful!" Either way, she was happy her best friend was getting married. She would finally find happiness and companionship. "We must celebrate!"

 

"You bet!" Daisy agreed. She really didn't need an excuse for partying, but this time, it felt more like it had to happen than something to keep from getting bored. She felt a sudden tugging on her skirt, then looked down to see Toadette pulling on her.

 

"Can I see? I want to see your ring!" Toadette requested. She wasn't the only one who'd come to see what the commotion was all about. Many of the toads and even several yoshi had begun to gather around. Even a few koopa had come over.

 

Daisy withdrew her hand from Peach's admiring grip and knelt down, offering her hand for Toadette to see. Toadette admired it, as did several others who began crowding around her to get a good view.

 

"Oh it's so beautiful, princess!" Toadette exclaimed. "I want one too!"

 

"Oh who to invite for the celebration," Peach continued their earlier conversation, placing a thoughtful finger on her cheek. "Certainly all our close friends and everyone we know."

 

"No bad guys!" Daisy added sharply. She didn't want anything or anyone interfering.

 

"Bowser is most certainly not invited," Peach affirmed with a sage nod. After his last stint, she didn't particularly want to see him. He'd caused enough trouble already, trashing the place and leaving many homeless. She wouldn't have all their noble efforts be undone so quickly.

 

"Well 'course not him," Daisy agreed. "I'm talking about those Wa's. That Waluigi really creeps me out. Remember how awkward it was the first time we met at one of Mario's Parties?"

 

Waluigi had an odd way of looking at people, staring seemingly at something or perhaps nothing at all. The way he could unhinge his jaw and those stringly limbs of his were unsettling at best. Daisy was pretty sure he had a thing for her, not that anyone could confirm or deny this. Waluigi had a strange tendency to talk in third person with that irritating arrogance. He never really spoke emotions or anything deep, and only seemed to talk about bob-ombs and cheating.

 

There was also this odd rivalry the two had with the Mario brothers. Daisy didn't want either Wario or Waluigi stirring up trouble and ruining the party. She'd have to kick them out herself. Literally. Even if she had to do it in her wedding dress and high heels.

 

"Mario usually invites them," Peach added, tapping her cheek again. What did he see in them? True, Wario had helped before, but he had a bad tendency to torment Toad. Waluigi was the oddball, but he usually stuck with Wario as if they were brothers. Mario was just too generous and forgiving, reaching out to even their enemies for a friendly game or race. Then again, Peach was too, often forgiving indiscretions for the sake of camaraderie.

 

"Bah," Daisy dismissed the idea, making a rather unhappy waving motion with her hand. Besides, the two princesses could arrange the party and invite who they wanted. "I'd rather they didn't come. They'd probably try to steal the gifts or something dumb like that."

 

"I suppose," Peach added. It did make sense. They were driven by money and thievery. She could pay them off not to come if need be. It seemed a bit underhanded, but she wanted to see Daisy and Luigi happy, and if that's what it took, then so be it.

 

"Strike up a guest list, my lady!" Toadsworth announced. "I'll begin preparations!"

 

...

 

The week since the announcement went by so quickly. The toads had finished the restoration of the village and began quickly decorating the castle and the surrounding town, stringing up flower decorations and dozens of paper lanterns in the shapes of daisies and stars. While Daisy wasn't their princess, she meant a lot to Peach, which meant she was important to them too. And it was hard to pass up a good celebration anyway.

 

Friends from all over Mushroom world had shown up for the party. Mario and Luigi returned from their restorative efforts elsewhere in the kingdom, and even Rosalina had taken time out from her galactic voyage to attend.

 

Luigi had dressed up a bit for the occasion. He wore a dark blue bowtie over a green formal jacket and blue pants. It looked a bit silly, but Daisy found it cute, planting a large kiss on his cheek affectionately. He bashfully kicked at the floor, blushing.

 

The celebration began with copious amounts of food. A band played on the stage in the main ballroom, playing various happy tunes as attendees danced about. The troopa with the guitar was very good, carrying on a very chipper tune. Peach spotted Rosalina across the room, being a wallflower as she floated at the edge of the dance floor with a cup of punch. "Oh this won't do," Peach frowned.

 

Mario looked up at her. "Something wrong?"

 

"Rosalina," Peach pointed out. "She looks so lonely. Let's invite her to dance with us." Mario quickly agreed, nodding his head, and the two wove through the dancing couples towards Rosalina. Peach offered her hand to her, hoping she would accept the offer. "Dance with us?"

 

A slight smile crossed her lips as Rosalina placed her hand in Peach's. "Certainly." She didn't give the offer a second thought. Mario was one of her closest friends, and she'd quickly grown attached to Peach. Dancing with them felt only natural. She wasn't well versed in the art, but that didn't seem to matter. Just moving and having a good time felt like the only objective.

 

....

 

"Fore!" On the nearby Castle Grounds golf course, Wario attempted to put his ball out of another sand trap. The ball bounced upward, collided with the edge of the trap, then rolled back to where it had started.

 

"Wahaha!" Waluigi laughed. He'd crouched down, resting an elbow on one knee and a hand on his golf club as he crouched down to watch Wario's rather futile attempts at golfing.

 

"Like you could do better," Wario threw the golf club on the ground. Neither was particularly good at this game. They never were. Those blasted Mario brothers were so good at it, the skills they had, that form and prowess. Curse them for being so good.

 

"Ha!" Waluigi laughed again, standing up and taking a position beside his ball in an attempt to put. "Waluigi just cheats better." He pulled the club back then swung it forward, almost as if he were hitting a baseball at an odd angle. Sure enough, the ball took flight, though not quite in the direction he'd planned. A breeze picked up, pushing the ball square into the lake.

 

"WAAAH. I hate this game!" Waluigi shouted in frustration, throwing the club. If it hadn't been metal, he would've snapped the thing in half by now. Sudden cheering from the nearby castle caught his attention, drawing him away from his frustrated thoughts. "Wha?"

 

Wario managed to pull himself out of the sand trap then proceeded to beat the sand out of his hat furiously. "What is it?"

 

"They're having a party," Waluigi pointed out, "without us."

 

Wario's attention snapped to the castle. Sure enough, there was a party. Without them. So that was the origin of the festive music they'd been hearing all afternoon. "Feh, who needs them anyway?" he frowned, shoving his finger up his nose. The two had been invited to most of the events in the past few years, invited to everything from golfing to kart racing, but suddenly that wasn't the case. They'd been left out.

 

It was to be expected, really. The two were villains, there to cheat their way to the top and run away with first prize. Wario often wondered why Mario even bothered to invite the pair, but then he never thought much past that, often distracted by a new business venture. Waluigi never seemed to give it much thought, putting his mind more to skill-based training so he could win over his rival Luigi. How that coward kept beating him was beyond his comprehension.

 

"That's right!" Waluigi shouted, shaking his fist at the castle, baring his rather large set of teeth. "We're better off without them! Besides that storm will ruin their fun! Wahaha!"

 

"What storm?" Wario's attention moved to where Waluigi was pointing. Over the lake rolled a rather ominous collection of clouds. They weren't the ordinary clouds in the kingdom, bearing no faces whatsoever. They moved more like mist than clouds, wispy and lightweight as they began rolling over the end of the course's green, effectively masking the flag which marked the location of the hole.

 

The cloud wasn't very big, spanning spanning from one end of the green to the other. It couldn't have been more than 20 feet long. As one end rolled forward, the other end seemed to roll upwards, almost like the tracks of a tank. The cloud suddenly turned, moving upwards in a rather erratic fashion, then proceeded horizontally towards the castle.

 

"What _is_ that?" Wario gaped at it. It certainly wasn't normal. That much he could tell. He considered for a moment this could be a new scheme created by Bowser's odd sense of black magic, but the koopa king was probably still back at his castle, licking his wounds.

 

No, this was something entirely different, something that sent a chill down Wario's spine.

 


	2. The mysterious star eater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A party never seems to go right in the Mushroom world, but for once, the great Koopa King isn't involved. But what could be this new enemy arriving in a dark cloud?

_W3d. Green. The symbol of life. Without green, the world will fall to ruin._

 

Rosalina's attention snapped suddenly towards the balcony which had a view of the nearby Castle Grounds golf course. Worry struck her sharp features as she stared out into the distance, suddenly drawn away from her joyous, incredibly awkward attempt at dancing with Peach and Mario.

 

"Rosalina?" Peach stopped her celebratory dancing when she noticed her friend's sudden change in demeanor. While Rosalina was often a mystery to the pink princess, this sort of worry seemed sudden and incredibly troubling. "Is something the matter?"

 

_Mfk3t. The Lady in Turquoise. A symbol of rebirth and renewal. Without turquoise, all will perish._

 

Rosalina glared sharply at the balcony. What was out there speaking on this level of existence? It was otherworldly, bellowing in a voice only the galaxies understood, speaking words from a long-lost language. Only she had heard the voice, and it troubled her. All will perish? The world will fall to ruin? "Something's very wrong," she replied to Peach. She wasn't sure she could explain this to her pink-clad friend, but she also wasn't certain she knew what was happening quite yet.

 

A rumbling resounded in the room, quickly interrupting the joyous music and drawing everyone's attention to the balcony where the sky suddenly turned black, or it seemed to, at least, as the black wispy cloud began to overtake the balcony and flow into the room. A few stars twinkled within the blackness, but they weren't stars belonging to the natural order of the galaxies. They'd been kidnapped.

 

"Star eater!" Rosalina shouted at the darkness, withdrawing her star wand from her sleeve. Several Lumas fell out of her sleeve as well, quickly clinging seeking refuge by clinging to Rosalina's legs. Using her wand, she drew a large circle, creating a barrier to protect the party guests as the galactic cloud flowed into the ballroom. The bubble barrier grew, enveloping the crowd.

 

"Do you know that... thing?" Peach asked, planting herself behind Rosalina. Right now, that seemed to be the safest location as Mario would probably be drawn out to fight the thing. While Bowser was certainly adept at magic, as was his advisor Kamek, this seemed a bit far beyond his scope of capabilities.. This thing, whatever it could be called, felt different. It put a pit in Peach's heart, a fear in her mind. Something was wrong.

 

Rosalina shook her head. "I do not; however this thing has swallowed stars. I fear it's up to no good." That was understating the situation, really, but she didn't want to cause unnecessary panic, especially as they were supposed to be celebrating. Yet in her heart, she knew something more sinister was afoot. A star eater was hardly a good sign and was a possible threat to the safety and lives of the stars and people dwelling near them.

 

The luma near Rosalina began acting somewhat strangely, its glow falling dimmer as it suddenly turned around and stumbled towards the middle of the crowd. It grew larger rapidly, expanding at an unprecedented rate. Rosalina turned, calling out to it in the language of the stars but it payed her no mind. Suddenly stopping before Luigi and Daisy, it quickly wrapped itself around Luigi despite his best efforts to wiggle free.

 

"Oh no you don't!" Daisy shouted, frantically kicking the possessed luma. "Give him back! He's mine!" True, Luigi could handle himself once he'd been pushed past his fear, but this sort of thing seemed even beyond him and Daisy combined.

 

Rosalina pleaded again, this time in an understandable language, "Luma! What are you doing? Please stop! Luigi is our friend!" The other lumas huddled around Rosalina, afraid. What was happening to it? Would the same thing happen to them?

 

_"W3d,"_  it replied, its voice somewhat warped and deep. Its color was fading away, turning the same black as the wispy cloud that had invaded the room. It lost its light, falling quickly into darkness.

 

"Luigi!" Mario reached forward, attempting to pull his brother out of the luma. He managed to grab Luigi's hand, but even pulling with all his might, he couldn't stop the consumption. Luigi's hand, along with his entire body, had been consumed by the possessed luma, which now proceeded to chew on Mario.

 

_"Dshr,"_  the luma stated, pulling Mario further and further inside it. Several star bits fell out of Mario's pocket as he was pulled inside, catching the attention of the real luma under the spell but only for a moment, before it sucked Mario inside then quickly dissipated, becoming a wisp of black smoke and floating away.

 

Peach leapt for the wisp but it evaded her grasp, leaving her on her knees on the ground, sobbing miserably. Daisy stood devastated beside her, staring in disbelief. She'd finally found happiness and it had been ripped from her very grasp. Both brothers were gone in less than a minute.

 

Rosalina turned to see the cloud retreat quickly back through the balcony and away from the castle. What did this ancient cloud want with the Mario Brothers? Star eaters were normally after stars and stardust, craving the taste of creation, yet eating two human brothers seemed completely uncharacteristic.

 

W3d. Dshr. Green. Red. Luigi. Mario.

 

Just what was it planning?

 

....

 

After spending a few days with Peach and Daisy to comfort them and ensure their safety, Rosalina had left the two princesses and returned to her home among the stars. The mysterious shadow plagued her mind since it had attacked the celebration.

 

The shadow had spoken in an ancient language, one even the stars seemed to have forgotten. It had first spoken of green and turquoise, but for some reason, it took red in place of turquoise. Rosalina turned the idea over in her head a few times, reasoning that Mario's disappearance was a mistake in the end. If going by colors, the intended target would have been her.

 

Speaking in ancient terms, the Lady in Turquoise which the shadow had mentioned, was the goddess of the sun and stars, a symbol of rebirth and renewal. Rosalina lived among the stars and she wore a blue similar to turquoise. It made sense, though why their absence would send the world into ruin she didn't quite understand. The stars would continue to live even without her.

 

What worried her even more was that the cloud could possess her luma. It frightened the other luma, and they hid themselves within the Comet Observatory and within the sleeves of her dress, hoping to not be possessed as well. Rosalina had holed herself away in the Observatory's library, hoping to find something in any of her books that would point to what this thing truly was and how to stop it. This thing was more than just a star eater; it was something more ancient and dangerous. And most important of all, she wished to find a way to return those who were taken. She had to rescue her friends.

 

She closed the book suddenly, standing up. The luma hiding in her sleeves shifted anxiously. "We need more information," she stated aloud. What she had at the Observatory just wasn't enough, but there was one place that might have the answer.

 

Rosalina piloted the Observatory across the galaxy to the only place she could even imagine contained information about such an ancient language. She shook the luma out of her sleeves, asking for them to help her search the ancient archives to find the answer. They quickly scattered about the Ancient Library seated at the heart of Sagittarius A*, the heart and soul of the galaxy. They were certain that the place would be safe even from the star eater.

 

Sure enough, after several days of searching, two luma returned with a large book titled _The Colors of Recreation_. Taking the book, Rosalina dusted it off, causing several luma to sneeze. The book looked as though it hadn't been checked out in millennia. She sat down, leaning against the bookshelf while the luma crowded around her. They felt safe around mama, and like Rosalina, they were curious why this odd ancient shadow had suddenly absorbed their friends, Luigi and Mario.

 

The book was ancient, perhaps as old as the galaxy itself. It was relatively thick, requiring both of her hands to hold it. The cover was decorated in geometric shapes in red, green, and turquoise, surrounded by frames of gold. The binding of the book was an ancient yet seemingly eternal technique of glue and twine, sewing the pages to the hard leather binding. The pages had yellowed throughout the years, warping slightly at the edges. Rosalina delicately turned the pages, studying the drawings decorating each page.

 

The first few sections detailed the birth of a new galaxy, the flow of magic and energy traveling from one point to the next, creating stars and worlds alike. The next few chapters showed unfortunate ends to galaxies. Collisions with other galaxies, pulling of magical forces, and simply dying after living out their full lives. None of this was new information. Rosalina knew much about the lives of the stars and their galaxies.

 

Yet one section remained within the book, one completely unexpected. " _The Recreation of Worlds_ ," she read the title aloud. "I don't remember this being in any of my books." True, some had tried to recreate worlds with galactic engines, but that was all modern technology and black magic. This book was far too ancient for such modern techniques.

 

Seeing the next page, she nearly dropped the book, gasping. It detailed something almost horrific: an ancient, magic-powered world engine which was capable of destroying a living world and stars and recreating them according to the world master's vision. It showed four stars of different colors with energy being forcibly removed, each one labeled in the language the mysterious cloud had spoken. The luma, sensing her surprise and shock, cowered behind her for protection, though a few peered over her arms to see what this book contained.

 

"Dshr, red," she read the first body's description aloud, tapping a finger on the page. "' _The color of destruction and of life. This is the first color required to begin reformation._ '" She paused. Mario was indeed red, but did he truly represent this sort of power? Granted, Mario was a hero beyond all description, capable of helping restore the stars and the luma who had gotten lost before. Was it possible someone so pure-hearted could also cause destruction and reformation?

 

She continued to the next body. "Mfk3t, Turquose." The cloud had spoken of this when it had first arrived. "' _The power of restoration. With this power, the new world will begin._ '" So far, the cloud had only mentioned turquoise but did not possess the power. Rosalina had planned to keep it that way.

 

Moving to the next color. "W3d. Green. ' _The power of renewal, the power required to rebuild the new world._ ' Luigi!" He did have a pure heart like his brother, though Luigi was far too often overlooked. His heart was perhaps stronger than his brothers, though he was often held back by cowardice or shyness.

 

"The final color, Khenet. Gold. ' _The color of eternal persistence. This power will breathe life into this new world, making it eternal._ ' Daisy?" She certainly was a persistent person, capable of surviving many hardships and continuing on with such a positive attitude. The cloud hadn't mentioned gold, but perhaps it was attempting to collect them in order.

 

"' _For the restoration, one must build the world engine and power it with the life of the planet and the stars._ ' The life of the planet and stars?" she glanced at the luma, who were now truly afraid. Of course, that was why she sensed the cloud was a star eater. It literally needed the power of the stars to create this world engine. "This has to be stopped. We can't allow that to happen."

 

Closing the book, she stood up and tucked it under her arm. "Send word to the luma staying with Peach. We need to warn her. Tell her we'll be on our way."

 

"That won't be necessary, Mfk3t."

 

Rosalina dropped the book in surprise. "Star eater!" Before her stood a man in a floor-length robe colored like a nebula and the stars, his scraggly hair covered in stardust. Like Rosalina, he was floating above the ground, seemingly floating on the mysterious cloud-like substance from where his feet would be.

 

"That's harsh, Lady in Turquoise," he chided. "If only you could see the vision for the new world. Pity you won't live long enough, lady of the stars." He suddenly thrust his arms out to the side, his cloak opening up to reveal galactic energies and stars. "I'll be taking you with me."

 


	3. The disappearance of Birabuto

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the sudden disappearance of one of Sarasaland's four kingdoms, Daisy takes matters into her own hands at the risk of her own life.

The Mushroom Kingdom had fallen quiet. It had been a week since the joyous pre-wedding celebration. The paper lanterns were still hanging, yet most of the town had taken down the fresh flower decorations. Many of the houses had lit candles in their windows, one red and one green, in hope that Mario and Luigi would soon return home. They were the heroes, always saving the kingdom, but this time, they needed the help.

 

No one had heard anything from Rosalina either. She'd left nearly a week ago in a quest to find more information on the star eater, yet she still hadn't returned.

 

Peach leaned up against the balcony railing, propping her chin on her hands as she stared solemnly up at the night sky. The sky was peaceful and cloudless. Yet even as the stars twinkled happily and the cloud hung low in the sky, the place felt lonely.

 

With her ambition, Peach surely could have chased after the cloud and beaten it with her parasol mercilessly, yet she hadn't a clue where to start. The kingdom had been searching high and low without a moments rest, leaving no block unturned, in search for the star eater, but not a single person returned with a sighting. The star eater was gone. Daisy had returned to Sarasaland to watch over the same search. Last Peach had heard, Daisy hadn't turned up a thing either. Their only hope was Rosalina.

 

"Peach!" The luma who often accompanied the pink princess flailed as it floated towards her. "Peeeaaaaaach!"

 

The princess turned, catching the panicked star in her arms as it threw itself at her. "What ever could be the matter? Did you find something? Did the shadows frighten you?"

 

"Mmmm~~~" the luma groaned in fear. "Mama sent a warning! Something about a world engine and bad galactic magic but the message got cut off! Luma cannot contact her! Luma is worried!"

Peach bit her lower lip as she held the frightened luma. She wanted to say it would all be okay, but she would just be lying to the luma and herself. Something was wrong. 'Bad galactic magic' was troubling.

 

"Keep trying," Peach suggested. "Perhaps she's simply out of range." Her words were filled with hope that there was a range in Luma-speak and that Rosalina was simply out of it. Both silently knew that something had happened, that the situation had grown even more dire.

 

....

 

"PRINCESS!" Ninjetta, a ninji who labeled herself as Daisy's retainer, hopped frantically and erratically into the room.

 

Daisy stirred. She had been sitting on the balcony of her own castle in Sarasaland, staring out at the stars. While they twinkled, something felt off about them, as if they were suddenly fading. She wasn't entirely certain how long she'd been staring at the sky or if she'd even moved since she'd sat down. It was uncharacteristic for her, as she was normally so energetic and full of life. The more time had passed, the more she longed for Luigi, the more she wanted to beat up that star eater herself. Yet as with Peach, Daisy had yet to find the star eater.

 

"What's wrong, Ninjetta?" Daisy tilted her head, finally stirring from her star-staring stance.

 

"Bi-birabuto!" she stammered. "The kingdom! It just... disappeared!"

 

Daisy stared, her eyes widened. Birabuto was one of the kingdoms in Sarasaland, not too far from Chai where she currently was. It was a desert land, notably so arid and hot goombos wouldn't even live there. Not many plants survived there, simply some palm trees and piranha plants. In recent years, pokey took up residence in the area, along with a large population of pidgit and ravens.

 

"What do you mean, _disappeared_?" The words just didn't make sense. How could an entire land just disappear?

 

Ninjetta just shook her head. "I don't know. That was the message! I mean, I'm pretty sure I heard it right..."

 

...

 

Daisy hadn't even bothered to change into her racing gear when she'd taken the motorcycle to travel. She barreled down the main highway at top speed, Ninjetta clinging on to her skirt for dear life. Something was going on, and it sounded dangerous. Kingdoms don't just disappear overnight. That was a fact she was absolutely certain was true.

The bamboo forests of Chai soon faded away, giving way to the harsher lands familiar to Birabuto. Though it was the middle of the night, Daisy couldn't see any sort of familiar shapes in the distance. Lately, Birabuto had become a place known for its nightlife as the days were far too hot. A band of entrepreneurial pidgits and ravens had started up a casino in the buildings which had been abandoned after the alien Tatanga had tried to take over Sarasaland. The casino always lit up the sky, filling the night with glittering lights. But tonight, however, the sky was completely black.

 

Noticing something was off, Daisy suddenly shifted sideways in an attempt to pull the bike to a swift halt. As she'd been driving down the road at top speed, the bike continued to skid until the highway simply ended into nothingness, flinging Daisy, Ninjetta, and the bike off a cliff and into a pit of darkness.

 

"OH MAN!" Daisy shouted, attempting to grab whatever was left of the highway, missing it only slightly before gravity kicked in and pulled the hapless duo further into the darkness. Ninjetta lost hold of Daisy's skirt, frantically grabbing for whatever she could. Reaching forward, Daisy grabbed the ninji, pulling her close into a tight embrace. She wasn't sure how far this pit went, but she wasn't going to lose Ninjetta in the process.

 

Further and further they fell. The stars in the sky faded to darkness. Daisy couldn't tell left from right anymore as they plummeted into what seemed like oblivious. And then they hit something, promptly ending their descent.

 

"Oooowwww~" Daisy groaned. "Sunnova--"

 

"Gotcha princess!"

 

"Huh?!" Daisy blinked, attempting to see who or what had spoken. It was impossible to see anything in the darkness of oblivion, but the voice sounded friendly at the very least. She felt the ground she'd landed on move towards what she thought was upward, wavering like a magic carpet. "A pidgit?"

 

"My name is Pascal," the voice replied. "We saw the fall, and I had to come after you."

 

The pidgit was rather swift, commanding the carpet upward at a rather quick pace, causing Daisy to hold on to the edges with a death grip. "We?" Daisy echoed.

 

The stars finally came into view overhead as the pidgit lifted the carpet up and back onto land. Daisy attempted to untangle herself from her layers of petticoats. She'd lost a shoe at one point, probably somewhere in the pit. As she stood up, she kicked the other one off, abandoning it in favor of being able to walk properly.

 

"We," Pascal motioned to the crowd which had arrived. Most were ravens carrying lanterns with a few pidgits flying nearby. A few pokey hid off in the distance. "We're survivors of Birabuto. We're not sure if there are more, but this is everyone we've found."

 

"Survivors?" Daisy blinked, incredibly shocked. "What happened? Where's Birabuto? What's going on here? Kingdom's don't just disappear, right?" None of this made sense.

 

"Birabuto did disappear, Princess," replied one of the ravens standing near the front of the group. "It happened earlier today."

 

"I saw it too," chimed in a pidgit. He stood on another pidgit's flying carpet. "I lost my carpet when it did. It was really strange! There was this black mass with red stars in it that appeared in the middle of the casino. It started expanding and that's when everything started disappearing! I told everyone to evacuate. Next thing we knew, all that was left of Birabuto was a large hole filled with darkness."

 

A black mass with red stars? "The star eater," Daisy thought aloud. "But what would a star eater want with Birabuto?" It was a question no one could answer. Most of the kingdom was aware of the star eater as Daisy had sent word out to search for it, but no one had expected it to show up.

 

It seemed her theory was wrong. Kingdoms really could disappear overnight.

 

...

 

Daisy stayed with the Birabuto refugees overnight, sleeping on one of the pidgit's carpets. Ninjetta had nestled up against her, mostly for protection and reassurance that Daisy would still be there in the morning. They both received a scare when Daisy's reckless driving nearly killed the both of them and they flew into a deep, bottomless pit created by the star eater. Many of the ravens nestled up, surrounding their princess, while some of the pidgit stayed awake to keep watch.

 

Dawn came, streaking the sky with light and life. Daisy stirred, looking up at the sky as it turned from black to blue. She pushed herself to her feet and carefully stepped over the sleeping ravens, being mindful not to wake them. Ravens were notoriously loud, particularly when upset, and she didn't want them all to start shouting at the same time.

 

She finally got a look at what remained of Birabuto, which wasn't much. The skid marks from her motorcycle trailed from the highway off the cliff where the highway abruptly ended. Daisy peered over the edge, seeing some of the palm trees managed to survive the attack, clinging on to the wall of the hole for dear life as they poked out sideways over the abyss. The hole was massive, expanding as far as she could see. It had encompassed the entirety of Birabuto, swallowing whole the pyramids, pipes, and buildings which covered the harsh landscape. Nothing was left. The kingdom was literally gone.

 

Spotting her shoe she'd kicked off last night, Daisy picked it up and threw it overhand into the pit, listening. She listened for a few minutes, hand cupped to her ear, and yet she heard nothing. Her shoe hadn't hit the bottom or even a sunken pyramid. There was nothing there. Nothing at all.

 

Daisy simply flopped backwards, sitting down abruptly, not even bothering to properly spread out her skirt. It was a mess at this point, dirt and tears lining the edges. She leaned forward, pushing her elbows to her knees, then burying her face between them. She wrapped her hands around the back of her neck, unsure of what to do. Everything was gone. GONE. Sure there had been attacks on the Mushroom World before. Bowser practically laid siege to Peach's castle every Tuesday, but it was never anything like this. There was always the possibility of rebuilding, a sign of hope. But here, there was nothing at all.

 

It was all because of that star eater. Before returning to her Comet Observatory, Rosalina had informed Daisy and Peach of what a star eater was. She babbled on about cosmic energies and dark matter and stuff Daisy really didn't listen to, but the last part she fully understood. Star eaters ate the stars and the stuff used to make stars. But Birabuto wasn't a star. It was a kingdom. Granted it emitted a lot of light at night, but it still wasn't a star.

 

"Are you going to be alright, princess?"

 

Daisy unburied her face to find Pascal had asked, though he wasn't alone. Many of the ravens had come to check on her too. "I'm mad," she replied honestly. "That star eater messed with my home and my fiancee. He'll pay for that." She wasn't entirely sure how yet, but that was the plan. She pushed herself to her feet, watching the sun rise over the horizon, casting an eerie shadow on the void where Birabuto once stood. Her expression read as an odd mix between worry and determination. Something had to be done.

 

"Ninjetta," Daisy ordered. "Send word to Peach. See if she can contact Rosie. I doubt this is gonna be an isolated attack." That star eater was after something, but what she hadn't the slightest idea. It just didn't make sense. First Luigi and Mario, then Birabuto. "Everyone else, we should look for more survivors. I don't want anyone stranded out here alone."

 

....

 

Ninjetta traveled back to Chai as quickly as she could hop. There was a pipe there near the castle that lead directly to the Mushroom Kingdom. With a message this urgent, she had to make haste to Princess Peach, hoping that it wouldn't be too late. However, someone had beaten her to the castle. "Princess Peach!"

 

Peach was a strange sight to see in Sarasaland. Daisy was the traveler, often staying with Peach for extended times, but this time, it was the opposite. The pink princess held a rather frightened luma in her arms, worry drawn across her soft features. "Where is Daisy? Is she well?"

 

Ninjetta frowned, then quickly explained what happened with Birabuto.

 

"Oh my, that's terrible," Peach frowned, wrought with worry. "And the star eater might've caused this?"

 

Ninjetta nodded.

 

This star eater was becoming worrisome by the minute. While she hadn't exactly been specific, Rosalina mentioned the star eater's behavior was really strange. It was after something other than stars but she wasn't entirely sure what or why. She'd babbled on about colors and symbolism, mostly spitting out odd words Peach had never heard before, saying the words were from an ancient language long forgotten. And after that, she'd left to consult the books and the stars. Peach hadn't heard much from her since then, aside from the garbled message the luma had relayed.

 

Ninjetta added, "Princess Daisy also said to get in contact with Princess Rosalina."

 

"I'm afraid that's not possible," Peach looked down. "We've lost contact with her."

 

The ninji paused, staring down at the ground. That threw a wrench in the equation, didn't it? "The princess will be back soon. She's looking for survivors."

 

Peach would've expected nothing less from her best friend. "I'll wait for her."

 

...

 

Daisy returned several hours later, caked in sand, slightly sunburned, and still without shoes. The floors of the castle felt good on her worn feet. With her, she had brought everyone they could find. The numbers weren't that large, as they'd only found a handful more in their search. The local ninji population had opened up their homes to take in as many refugees as possible. Those who couldn't be accommodated were offered one of the castle wings.

 

"Daisy."

 

She looked up as she attempted to pick the sand out from between her toes. "Peach? What're you doing here? What's wrong?" Her immediate thought was that the Mushroom Kingdom had suffered a similar fate as Birabuto.

 

"I've lost contact with Rosalina," Peach informed her. "She sent a message through this luma, but it was incredibly garbled. Something concerning a 'world engine' and bad galactic magic."

 

"Wait," Daisy put her foot back on the ground and furrowed her eyebrows into a knot of worry and frustration. "You don't think that star eater got to her, do you?"

 

Peach shook her head. "It is possible," she confessed. She'd turned the possibility over in her mind since last night when the luma panicked and hid in her arms. She'd never seen the luma act like that before. It was genuinely scared for mama.

 

"That sunnova--" Daisy shouted, clenching her fists at her side. "Enough waiting around, Peach! We need to do something!"

 

Surprisingly, Peach completely agreed. "We do. When I return home, I plan on contacting all our allies, even the shaky ones. With everyone banded together, surely we will be victorious and stop this star eater, returning our friends to us."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of a long one, isn't it? It was originally two chapters, but it just didn't flow right separate. So together they now are.
> 
> I've decided to use a lot of SMB2/USA baddies for Sarasaland to make it different from the Mushroom Kingdom. And some of those baddies don't always get love. I figure critters migrate anyway. There are mentions of cross-kingdom migrations in the first Mario & Luigi RPG.
> 
> All the critters and locations in this chapter are based on various games. Chai and Birabuto are kingdoms within Sarasaland, mentioned as levels in Super Mario Land. Goombos are round, bulbous goombas native to Sarasaland. Pidgit are those black birds that fly on carpets in Super Mario Bros 2. The ravens originated from Yoshi’s Island, but I’m taking them from the Super Princess Peach version, because they’re my favorite. When they cry, the shake the entire screen and stun Peach for a moment. The ninji originated also in Super Mario Bros 2 and are the little black star-like ninja critters that jump up and down. They appear in some of the Paper Mario games.
> 
> As for Daisy, I had a lot of fun writing for her in this chapter. She comes across as such a tomboy. She really seems like the type to get her hands dirty (literally even) and take care of her own problems, Super Mario Land aside (that's where Tatanga came from). I imagine her manners aren't all that proper either. I wanted to bring out an emotional side to her, one which is fueled by her desire to help and protect her kingdom and her friends. Nothing seems to go right for her.


	4. HELLO YELLO

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Peach begins to call out for assistance, Daisy takes to finding a new ally in a rather strange little man who drives cars made out of garbage cans and soda pop. Can this mad scientist help Daisy understand what's happened to Birabuto?

Perhaps having Parakarry deliver requests for help was a bad idea. While Parakarry was the postman of the Mushroom Kingdom, he had a bad tendency to deliver letters late or just plain forget about them. Peach had given him a rather large stack of missives to various members around the kingdom and even outside it in hopes someone had information about the star eater or at least knew what one was. The letters also contained requests for help in fighting the creature.

 

It had been only a few days since Birabuto had disappeared in Sarasaland. Peach hadn't heard from Daisy about any additional disappearances, so she had to assume Daisy's search for allies and survivors was going well. As well as one could call this sort of situation, at least.

 

"HELLO YELLO!" The familiar chipper voice rang out in the rather solemn castle. Someone had gotten the letter. Starlow, the yellow star sprite and a good friend of Peach, had arrived, floating in. While her voice sounded a bit sing-song, she actually looked rather worried.

 

"It's good to see you again, Starlow," Peach greeted her, "though I wish it were under better circumstances."

 

True the circumstances were rather dismal, but Starlow would've come for tea if Peach had asked. Starlow was upset she couldn't make it to the wedding celebration, but she had Star Sprite duties to attend. Poor timing, really, though a star sprite encountering a star eater didn't sound like the greatest match-up. Perhaps it was better she missed it.

 

"I came as soon as I could get information," Starlow offered. "When you mentioned 'star eater' in your letter, I had to research the legends." The star sprites had been around the Kingdom for generations, often guarding the place when something dangerous or strange arrived. The presence of something called a star eater certainly spelled trouble.

 

"Did you find anything?" Peach asked curiously, motioning towards the boardroom where they could discuss in detail any findings. "Was there any mention of a world engine?"

 

"Nothing like that," Starlow replied, following Peach. "Just legends. Mostly contradictory nonsense. It's said that star eaters like to feed on stardust to grow larger. Then when they're big enough, they swallow the galaxy's core, which pretty much kills the galaxy and all life within it."

 

Well that was unsettling. Peach nearly chewed on one of her fingers. "Our star eater sounds much different. It swallowed up Mario and Luigi and possibly our star princess friend, Rosalina. Then it swallowed an entire kingdom in Sarasaland." She still wasn't entirely certain of Rosalina's status. The star eater seemed to stay in Mushroom World, and Rosalina had been light years away. There was the possibility the two had encountered one another, though it was still highly unknown.

 

Starlow frowned. "That  _doesn't_  sound a thing like the legends. Are you sure it's a star eater?"

 

"That is what Rosalina had called it when it arrived," Peach replied. "The luma are terrified of it, perhaps for good reason. The star eater managed to possess one of them. This creature is rather frightening and attacks seemingly at random. Rosalina mentioned it was speaking in some sort of ancient tongue forgotten by the stars."

 

An ancient tongue forgotten by the stars? That sounded like something even the star sprites didn't know. Starlow hadn't yet met Rosalina, but there were legends of a lady among the stars. This star-princess Rosalina had to have extensive knowledge of the galaxy, more so than just the stars that hung in the sky. Perhaps she lived among the stars, and if she had any relation to the luma people, then she had to be of galactic importance. The disappearance of a galactic figure was nothing short of disastrous. Perhaps the so-called star eater was trying to eat the galaxy in a different way, more figuratively than literally.

 

"Well whatever it is," Starlow added, "it's definitely troubling. I'll stay with you to help fight it." She certainly didn't want Peach to be alone in this sort of situation. Peach was a balancing aspect of the kingdom. Her disappearance could easily throw the place into turmoil. Granted Bowser had a tendency to kidnap her, but he didn't  _eat_  her. The last time Peach had been eaten, it nearly caused the end of the world.

 

"Thank you," Peach smiled. "I'm quite thankful to have you along to help." Her mind was still wrought with worry, and despite her smile, it still read across her face. She was worried about her people and her friends. She was horribly worried about Daisy and her kingdom. Sarasaland was so rarely attacked. This sort of thing was no doubt devastating.

 

With silence striking the pair, Starlow surveyed the empty board room. Normally it would be filled with heroic figures like Mario and scientists and advisers. Luigi would just be tagging along. Starlow didn't always think highly of the green brother. He seemed more of a coward than anything else, but Mario always spoke so highly of him. She couldn't figure out why. Maybe he had some sort of secret power.

 

"I'm not the only one you sent a letter to, am I?" Starlow asked, breaking the silence.

 

Peach shook her head. "I sent many letters out with Parakarry, but perhaps I sent too many. He may have lost a few."

 

Chipper as she often was, Starlow had no hesitation to express frustrations. "Seriously?" Starlow frowned sharply, gritting her teeth in frustration. "What letter carrier loses _letters_ in the face of a world-wide _emergency?!_ I'll deliver them myself if I have to!"

"That's quite alright," Peach objected. Parakarry wasn't exactly the most responsible letter carrier, but certainly he'd get the job done. Eventually. And besides, Peach wanted Starlow to stay with her. She didn't want to be alone.

 

"If you say so," Starlow huffed. "But the offer's still open."

 

"I would like it if you stayed with me instead," Peach confessed.

 

Okay, that changed everything. Starlow floated over to her. "Okay, I'll stay with you." She couldn't very well leave Peach alone with this star eater thing running around, now could she? "We'll find an answer to this." Somehow.

 

...

 

He was a strange sort of man, short, elderly, with thick coke-bottle glasses and one stray hair on the top of his head. He arrived at the Chai Kingdom in a car made from garbage cans and ran on soda. The professor was a rather eccentric friend of Luigi's, though he'd come to know Mario as well. He arrived with a missive in hand at Daisy's castle.

 

"Glad you could make it," Daisy invited the professor in. Unlike Peach, Daisy didn't have a lot of letters to mail out. Most of her allies were also Peach's and lived in the Mushroom Kingdom. While Peach did know him, Professor Elvin Gadd was more an associate of Luigi's than anyone else's. He tended to move about, going wherever investigations too him. He'd taken up residence nearby Sarasaland to study ghosts, so he wasn't too difficult to track down.

 

"Ohoho, not a problem at all, youngster! Always happy to help out and study a galactic creature!" The professor nodded, excited at the scientific prospects but underneath concerned for his dear friend's whereabouts. "I'm sure we'll find Luigi and Mario in no time." Pulling a white DS from his lab coat pocket, he flipped it open and turned a bit, using it to survey the area. "Hm." The DS served as a scientific device, taking readings of all sorts and spitting out information on both of the dual screens. The professor custom-made them, even giving one to Luigi which he dubbed the Dual Scream. That particular one was used for mapping and communications among other scientific and investigative features.

 

"I can take you to where the star eater last attacked," Daisy offered.

 

"Ohoho, excellent plan!" E. Gadd agreed, motioning towards his odd soda-powered car. "We'll take the SodaPop3000!"

 

The SodaPop sputtered down the highway at impressive speeds, considering the thing ran on soda alone. Ninjetta had come along for the ride, refusing to leave Daisy's side, literally, as she clung to her princess. The SodaPop pulled to a stop on top of the tire tracks Daisy's bike had left before she careened into the pit only a few days prior.

"Oho, now this is interesting!" the professor exclaimed, hopping out of the car and quickly opening up his DS. Readouts and charts flickered on both screens, offering copious amounts of data, none of which Daisy actually understood. They were just lines and bars and stuff.

 

"What is it?" Daisy asked, hopping out of the car with Ninjetta still clinging to her skirt. She'd since given up attempting to shake the ninji off. "Did you find something?"

 

"I did, and it's fascinating!" he replied excitedly. "This pit, it's covered with stellar energy. It's as if the place just burst like a super nova."

 

Well that matched up with the description the pigits and ravens had given her about the incident. "The locals said that the star eater had arrived and expanded, eating the kingdom whole." The idea of the kingdom bursting like a supernova just bothered her. Those were those pretty cloud things out in space and stuff. Rosalina had babbled on about them at one point, talking about the flow of cosmic energies. Daisy didn't particularly listen to the subject, but she enjoyed looking at the photos of them Rosie had brought with her. This hole, however, wasn't pretty. It was just dark.

 

The professor turned, bounding down the circumference of the pit for another reading. "Yes, yes, I'm quite sure. This  _is_  definitely cosmic energy out of balance."

 

"If we fix this energy stuff, will Birabuto come back?" Daisy babbled. She really didn't understand this cosmic stuff.

 

"Hm," the professor replied, tapping his chin as more readings spilled over the screens. "Hard to say right now."

 

Daisy frowned, biting her lower lip in frustration. She wanted to throw her current pair of shoes at the so-called cosmic disruption, hoping that maybe the kingdom was just invisible and her shoes would reveal it. But she knew it didn't work that way. The hole had nearly swallowed her up and had already claimed her last pair of shoes.

 

"Chin up, young princess!" E. Gadd consoled, noticing her obvious frustration. While the science was certainly a fascinating study, countless lives were at stake here, including his friends Mario and Luigi. "Energy doesn't just disappear. It's displaced. Surely everyone is still somewhere which means I can build something to _re_ place them." It wasn't beyond his capabilities. He'd built transporters and pixelators before. Something to restore them wouldn't be too difficult. It would just take time and research.

 

Even so, it was probably the best news Daisy had heard all week. "What will it take to make this re-placer thingy?"

 

"Research and time," the professor replied, shifting back towards the SodaPop to take some more readings. "Cosmic energy is a touchy thing."

 

"You and Rosie'd get along so well," Daisy frowned, knowing very well that Rosalina was missing. Ironic, really. For once, Daisy was wishing she'd listened to Rosalina's babbling about cosmic stuff even once. Maybe if she _had_ listened, they'd find a solution sooner.

 

"Rosie? Another young princess?" the professor looked up from his readings.

 

"Young? Dunno about that," Daisy replied. Even if she _looked_ young, she was some sort of galactic guardian. She was probably a few hundred years old, right? Just how old was the galaxy again? "But she's like a cosmic guardian princess. She knows all about cosmic energies and stars and things, but last I heard, she's missing too."

 

"Hm, that is a bit troubling," the professor nodded. He really knew nothing about cosmic princesses, but the girl seemed to be a particularly key figure in the cosmos. "Perhaps her absence is causing these rather odd readings." An alarm began screaming on his DS. "Oho~ I think we're about to find out."

 

"Say what?!" Daisy exclaimed, quickly turning to see whatever the professor was looking at. Behind them, in the middle of the day, there was a darkness on the horizon. The edges were soft and wispy yet it distinctly looked like the dead of night at the core. "No! You can't take Chai!" She wanted to run towards it, to beat the star eater and get it to spit everything and everyone up. Taking off a few steps, she stopped when she felt Ninjetta yanking on her skirt, digging her feet into the dirt in an attempt to get her to stop.

 

"Careful there, young princess!" the professor called out to her. "If I'm right about this, that thing will swallow you whole!"

 

Daisy stopped, still poised to make a mad dash for the shadow. He was right, though. The star eater would eat her too, but she didn't want to watch her entire kingdom to become one cosmic hole in the ground. It was _her_ home and she didn't want to share it. Even so, what good would she do to help solve this situation if she became unbalanced cosmic dust?

 

"You stupid star eater!" she shouted in the direction of the darkness surrounding Chai. "Leave Sarasaland alone! It's not food!"

 

Almost as if the star eater had heard her, the night seemed to spread like wildfire, expanding at an alarming rate. The ground below them disappeared, crumbling below them and falling into the black of night. The SodaPop turned over sideways, falling into the abyss. The ground below Daisy and Ninjetta crumbled away, leaving them to fall with the SodaPop if Professor E.Gadd hadn't reached for them.

 

"Hold tight, fellers!" he shouted over the noise of the crumbling. "This isn't a game over!"

 

The ground below the professor crumbled away, leaving him to fall into the darkness with the two girls.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are a few interesting characters here, pretty high profile if you’ve played some of the major side series.
> 
> First, Starlow. She hails from the later Mario & Luigi RPGs. She appears in both Bowser’s Inside Story (3) and Dream Team (4). She’s an obnoxious little thing, but still cute and helpful. Her catch phrase is “HELLO YELLO”, always properly capitalized.
> 
> Parakarry hails from Paper Mario. He’s a paratroopa who wears an aviator hat with goggles and carries a mailbag. He’s notorious for losing letters.
> 
> And finally, Professor Elvin Gadd, better known as E. Gadd. He’s a pretty prominent character in both the Mario and Luigi RPGs (1 Superstar Saga and 2 Partners in Time) and Luigi’s Mansion. He’s short, even by Mario games standards and invents all the really weird ass stuff in the games. Somehow a car running on soda seems like his sort of thing to do.


	5. The not-so-fortunate street

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the disappearance of yet another kingdom, Daisy and the Professor arrive at Peach's castle in the most unorthodox of manners. As the group attempts to comprehend all they'd seen so far, something stirs nearby.

The boardroom at Peach's Castle still felt rather empty. Birdo and Yoshi had arrived shortly after Starlow, both to offer whatever help they could. Dr. Toadley, the local doctor and fortune teller, had arrived later in the afternoon with his crystal ball. He was a short fellow, a toad with stars on his cap. He wore a long robe and a small cloth over his mouth, concealing all but his eyes on his face. He had spent the past few days divining and reading the images which had manifested on the ball, none of which actually made sense.

 

As he sat at the boardroom table, his crystal ball sat upon a small pillow, showing images of a black swirling mass with four distinctly different colored stars faintly shining against the darkness. Despite how many times he'd waved his hands over the ball, the image simply wouldn't change. "Do these images make sense? They do not," the doctor shook his head.

 

"Hm." Starlow pondered aloud, floating next to Peach. "Red. Yellow. Green. And turquoise. Surely those colors must mean _something_."

 

"Well Mario and Luigi are red and green," Birdo pointed out. "Weren't they abducted by this heinous star eater, darling?"

 

Peach tapped her lips thoughtfully. The luma shifted uncomfortably in her lap as she sat at the boardroom table with the other gathered allies. "Rosalina wears blue. That would match the turquoise."

 

"Could this be all symbolism? It could," the doctor nodded, waving his hands over the crystal ball once again. The image still wouldn't change, seemingly stuck on a combination of the four colors as colorful stars lighting up the darkness.

 

"Well what if----" Starlow cut herself off quickly. "What is that?!"

 

A light sparked in the middle of the boardroom. It began swirling in colors of black, orange, and peach, forming an odd swirled portal. Blocks flew through the portal, stacking up as if building someone or something.

 

"The star eater?!" Starlow panicked.

 

"No, it's different," Peach corrected her. The blocks continued to build and build until three people manifested then fell to the boardroom floor with a hard thud.

 

"Owwwww," the intruder groaned, rubbing her backside gingerly.

 

"Daisy!" Peach exclaimed.

 

The orange princess looked up, blinking at the sudden bright light. Ninjetta and E. Gadd had landed on top of her. She herself was a mess, her petticoats torn and skirt rumpled. She'd lost a shoe again. Her crown had fallen from her head at some point, though it had been caught in the transport and clattered to the ground next to her.

 

"Wait, Peach?" Daisy stammered. "How? What? Where?"

 

"Ohoho, my remote pixelator is a success!" E. Gadd clapped, hopping off Daisy. He pulled out his white DS, offering commands to close the portal so that the cosmic energy wouldn't be able to follow them. "A bit off target, but still a good location!"

 

"Daisy, you're in my boardroom," Peach replied, rising from her seat and kneeling beside Daisy to ensure her best friend wasn't hurt. "What happened?"

 

Daisy hit the ground with her fist in frustration. "Chai's gone. That damn star eater just ate it! UUUGH!" That marked two kingdoms of her small land gone, leaving only the watery Muda and island Easton. If that thing managed to swallow Muda, Easton would probably sink along with it. Then everything would be gone and she couldn't do a thing to counter it. That star eater had nearly swallowed her twice.

 

"Doctor Toadley," Peach glanced back at the doctor who had stayed by his crystal ball in an attempt to divine more information. "Is it possible that Daisy is the yellow in your vision?"

 

The doctor swirled his hands over the crystal ball once more. The images still hadn't changed, persistently showing the four colored stars in the black of night. "Is Daisy our yellow? It is possible."

 

"What do you mean, yellow?" Daisy blinked, finally sitting up with Ninjetta still clinging to her waist. Peach filled her friend in on the little information they'd found with Dr. Toadley's vision, not that it made much sense yet. Daisy babbled on about what they'd seen, how the star eater just ate the entirety of Chai. The colors and cosmic imbalance seemed to match up with what Rosalina had said shortly before she left for her Observatory.

 

"Ohoho, chins up, young fellers," the professor offered. "Nearly getting eaten has regurgitated a lot of new and useful information!" The pun was rather poor in taste, but he'd said it anyway.

 

Daisy frowned sharply at the pun but decided to let it slide. The professor was eccentric but he was also brilliant. "Does that mean you can find Luigi, Mario, and Rosie? Even Sarasaland?"

 

The professor nodded with a bit of glee. "It looks like it! We'll find the brothers and friends! I'll need time to sort out the research and create a Regurgitator 2000." Aptly named, though it wasn't entirely necessary to do so.

 

"Can Dr. Toadley help with this information? He can," the doctor offered.

 

"I'll set you both up with a place to work within the castle," Peach added, standing up and motioning to follow her. With these brilliant minds, there had to be a solution.

 

.....

 

A district neighboring Toad Town, Fortune Street was the biggest shopping district in the entirety of the Mushroom Kingdom. While there was a mall within Toad Town, nothing could quite compare to Fortune Street. Wario and Waluigi had taken up residence there some time ago, setting up a highly successful strip of shops along the Street. While Wario mostly ran the shops, Waluigi helped out on occasion, when he wasn't off rigorously training in skilled sports in an attempt to beat his rival Luigi.

 

Today was one of those days. The shop wasn't busy, and Waluigi sat on a chair behind the counter of the game shop, leaning on the counter with one arm, his feet kicked up on the nearby stool. He'd heard talk about a star eater thing, but nothing concrete. He only figured it had to be linked to that cloud he and Wario had spotted when playing golf. That was the day that Mario and Luigi had disappeared too, leaving him and Wario without rivals.

 

With the fear of the star eater lurking, not many people had ventured out despite the day being clear and warm. Local rumor was the thing was going to swallow the entire planet. People were dumb.

 

The door to the shop opened, ringing the bell that hung on the door frame. Waluigi perked up to see a blue-shelled paratroopa with a mailbag strapped over his shoulder fly in. Waluigi had seen him a few times before, remembering him as the area's mailman.

 

"A letter for you!" Parakarry announced, rummaging through his bag. A few odd letters fell out, followed by a super leaf pressed and flattened into a clear plastic envelope. He hurriedly picked up the displaced letters then handed the proper letter to Waluigi. "For you and Wario! A letter carrier's job is never done!" The paratroopa turned and hurriedly flew out the door, dropping a letter or two on the way out.

 

The letter was addressed in very formal writing, closed with the official royal seal of Princess Peach, a traditional melted pink plastic seal with the stamp of her crown in the center. "Watch it be Waluigi and Wario's late invitation, waaahaha" he laughed to himself, kicking his feet up on the counter as he leaned back in his chair.

 

He frowned at his own joke. As if it were the invitation. Daisy had no reason to invite either of them to the party. Their relationship was horribly one-sided, and Waluigi was painfully aware of it. She wanted Luigi, not Waluigi, but that didn't necessarily stop him from trying.

 

He dug his finger under letter's flap and forced it open, pulling out a handwritten letter from Peach herself. "A call for help?" Waluigi frowned at it. Parakarry must've delivered the letter to the wrong place again.

 

The bell on the door began to ring incessantly despite the door being completely closed. Several toads ran past the windows in a panic followed by several para-beetles and troopas. Parakarry flew past suddenly as well. Something was going on.

 

Shoving the missive into his pocket, Waluigi made a quick exit outside. He wasn't the heroic type even if he wanted to be, which he didn't. Instead he could use the panic and hysteria to his advantage and cheat a few people out of their belongings. Wario had the same idea, arriving from another shop to meet his partner in crime on the sidewalk. Yet their plans of pilfering and cheating would have wait.

 

"Waaaa, that's the same cloud from before!" Waluigi pointed out, slouching over and jabbing a finger down towards the end of the street. Most of the shoppers had fled the scene as a large black mass had swallowed up half the block. A few red stars weakly twinkled within the mass as it expanded.

 

This certainly wasn't the time for pilfering. There was nothing left to pilfer as the mass expanded more and more, taking the shops and streets with it. The ground below the two suddenly crumbled away to the black mass below. Waluigi grabbed for anything he could but any reachable land soon fell to the darkness as well. He managed to catch Wario by one hand. If there were one thing he actually cared about other than cheating and winning, it was Wario.

 

Parakarry wasn't too far above them, attempting to fly free of the gravitational pull the dark hole in the ground was emitting. He managed to escape, though his bag soon fell victim to the pull, plummeting downwards as the shift in weight flung Parakarry high into the sky. Letters littered the sky, shooting past Waluigi and Wario like falling stars. Waluigi managed to catch the pressed super leaf and use its power.

 

Now as for Waluigi, he flipped around, grabbing Wario with both hands and flying them both to safety. They landed on the outskirts of Fortune Street at the edge of the nearby Bubble Lake. Nothing remained of Fortune Street save a gaping hole of nothing. "Waaaaaa...... too close," he huffed, breathing heavily as he slumped over on the grass. While Waluigi was certainly more fit than Wario, his efforts took mostly everything out of him. It was exausting.

 

Wario stood up from where they landed to peer over the edge. The pit seemed to go on for miles with no signs of a bottom and no signs of whatever remained of his shops. Only darkness remained accompanied with what looked like a few faint twinkling stars. "Feh."

 

One of the faint stars in the pit seemed to glisten suddenly brighter. It rose higher and higher at an alarming rate before coming to a halt right before Wario. He was tall, seemingly human with a long cloak that looked as if it had been woven from the stars. His unkept hair was sprinkled with stardust. "Khenet."

 

"It's _Wario_. Get it right, buddy," Wario scowled at the man.

 

"Khenet," he repeated, his voice rather haunting and low. Floating above the pit, he thrust his arms out to the side, flinging his cloak open, revealing the stolen stars under his cloak. "The last piece. The color of persistence. With you, my creations will become eternal."

 

"What are you----" Wario cut short as he attempted to turn and escape the sudden gravitational pull into the cloak. Waluigi reached for him, grabbing for whatever he could, only managing to catch his hat before Wario was sucked into the darkness.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fortune Street is based of the game with the same name. While Fortune Street itself doesn't exist within Mushroom World, several of the boards do. Even so, Fortune Street seemed like a place that could plausibly exist within the Mushroom Kingdom. This is based off the basic Mario boards, namely Peach's Castle.
> 
> The mall in Toad Town is built in Mario & Luigi RPG3: Bowser's Inside Story. It's right outside the castle walls and has all sorts of shops, including Dr. Toadley's mystical medical clinic. The place has all sorts of shops including a tea shop and clothing stores.
> 
> And nearby the mall is Bubble Lake, a huge lake with small grassy hills and lots of trees and deadly flora.


	6. The unlikely ally

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More begin to gather at the one safe haven, Princess Peach's castle. The damage is spreading across the Mushroom World, but how far has it truly spread?

"Princess! Princess Peach! Emergency, by boogity!" The blue-capped toad rushed into the room, waving his arms frantically, only stopping for a brief second to push his glasses back up.

 

Peach had just returned to the main board room to meet up with the other members assembled by her missives requesting help. She had just offered Dr. Toadley and E. Gadd the castle's laboratory for all their research into the matter and potentially creating this Regurgitator 2000 to restore all which had been lost. "What's the matter, Toadbert?"

 

"It's just awful!" Toadbert replied. "Fortune Street!"

 

"That's a lovely place to visit, my darling~" Birdo commented, putting a hand to her face as she mused over the times she herself had shopped there for bows.

 

"It's not there anymore, by boogity!" Toadbert finished. "Parakarry saw it happen!" He beckoned them to follow him outside

 

The assembled heroes all rushed to the front entrance of the castle to find the paratroopa exhausted, lying face down on the steps breathing heavily. He'd lost a shoe and his mailbag. Toadiko, Toadbert's pink-capped counterpart, had been tending to Parakarry, offering him a mushroom shake to help restore his strength.

 

The paratroopa managed to sit up and explain in surprisingly thorough details what he'd witnessed at Fortune Street, detailing the massive hole and how the darkness just swallowed everything up before he flew back to the castle with every ounce of strength he could muster.

 

Daisy folded her arms and nodded, listening to his description. "That is _definitely_ the star eater. That's pretty much how it happened at Chai. And the thing likes to steal just one shoe too."

 

The others had at first brushed the shoelessness off as Daisy being less-than-ladylike but Parakarry was also missing one shoe. This star eater certainly had some strange habits, none of which actually made much sense yet. There didn't seem to be any sort of pattern with the attacks. At first it seemed to be swallowing up Sarasaland, but just now it had attacked the Mushroom Kingdom as well.

 

"It's after something," Daisy nodded.

 

Ninjetta looked up worried at her liege. "Could it be chasing you?"

 

"Me?" Daisy blinked, stupidly pointing at herself. She had to pause and think about the earlier conversation. Dr. Toadley had spouted some backwards nonsense about colors, and despite Peach's best explanations, Daisy still found her mind wandering back to her own land and how much it wasn't there. Then she'd thought of Luigi, that charming chicken-hearted man she so loved. Both were gone. That last part made her want to punch things.

 

"If you are the yellow star, it could be trying to follow you," Peach pointed out, worry lacing her delicate features.

 

"Why not just let it eat me then?" Daisy frowned. "Then it'll stop eating everyone else." She didn't want to be responsible for disappearing cities. She didn't want that weighing down on her heart like a chain chomp. She wanted it to all stop, for the people to survive and live on. And there was a small shred of hope inside her mind that maybe, if she jumped into that star eater, she'd be able to pull Luigi out.

 

"Don't say things like that!" Peach shouted at her. "No one blames you for any of this!" Peach could easily see the pain twisting Daisy's features into a frustrated knot. "And if that star eater gets you, it will spell disaster and the end of the world. We will stop it. We promised, remember?"

 

They had promised. After the disappearance of Birabuto, the two princesses swore that they would find an end to this and bring everyone back.

 

"Peach, look out!" Daisy shouted, suddenly snatching Ninjetta from the ground to use as a weapon, pulling the hapless ninji back over her shoulder, preparing to attack.

 

Peach's attention snapped to the supposed attacker. It was Waluigi, alone, hunched over as usual. He held no weapon but instead held Wario's hat. He was still feeling the effects of the super leaf, sporting fox ears and a tail. He looked miserable, his cheeks slightly puffy and his eyes slightly red. He'd also managed to lose one shoe.

 

"Daisy, wait!" Peach exclaimed, grabbing at Daisy in an attempt to stop her and possibly rescue Ninjetta. Peach was as surprised as anyone else to see the slouched man arrive at her own doorstep. She'd sent him a missive but never expected a reply. Even so, he probably wasn't here for the missive. He lived on Fortune Street.

 

"Leggo, Peach!" Daisy fussed, gripping onto Ninjetta despite her squirming. "He's probably here to cheat us out of something or take advantage of this situation!"

 

"I don't think that's the case," Peach countered, stepping forward towards him. Waluigi stood his ground, though he watched her carefully. He'd never really been this close to her, as he seemed to spend more time looking at Daisy instead. They were close to the same height, though Waluigi could easily have a few inches on her if he stood up straight.

 

Peach reached forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug. She was driven by emotions, her empathy for him. She could see the sadness in his eyes, how tightly he held Wario's hat in his hand. "The star eater took Wario, didn't it?"

 

He tensed up for a moment, surprised by her action. He came to her, mostly expecting to be beaten by Daisy and turned away, but instead he was greeted with compassion. He didn't quite understand it at first, as it wasn't how he worked. He was a cheater and a thief, not a lover or even someone with a shred of compassion. And yet here he was, with the princess of compassion offering him a comforting hug. "Waa....." Finally giving in to his own heart, he wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her shoulder.

 

Peach couldn't quite imagine what he was thinking. Unlike Wario, Waluigi was always such an enigma. He seemed to be set on things that made sense to very few, such as his self-declared rivalry with Luigi and his odd manner of speaking. Yet as they stood there on the castle steps, his face buried in her shoulder, she understood everything she needed to.

 

"Stay with us," Peach offered. "The more of us, the greater chance we have at being victorious and rescuing everyone." She wasn't entirely sure he'd seen the missive or even received it, but the offer was open either way. Right now, they needed every ally they could, even the odd ones. This star eater didn't show any discrimination in its attacks, swallowing up enemy and ally, towns and cities, even shoes.

 

Daisy frowned, folding her arms. She wasn't fond of Waluigi at all, but Peach did have a point. they had both agreed to amass every ally they could, and Peach probably saw something in the odd beanpole that Daisy just couldn't see. She didn't know too much about Waluigi but Wario kept him around, so he had to be good at something.

 

"I'll cheat that star eater outta everything it's got," Waluigi declared, his face still buried in her shoulder. That was what brought him here. The missive simply gave him the suggestion, but he'd come of his own volition. If that star eater could cheat him out of Wario, he'd cheat it back with the most powerful allies in the kingdoms.

 

....

 

Daisy frowned, staring at the sky. The past two weeks had been miserable after she finally decided to make her happiness eternal with Luigi. Surveys of Sarasaland showed that only the oceanic kingdom Mudo had managed to survive and was currently draining into the pit formerly known as Eaton.

 

Sarasaland wasn't that large, and now all that remained was a large hole. The Mushroom Kingdom had remained relatively untouched thus far, save the gaping pit where Fortune Street once stood. While the Kingdom always seemed to be in turmoil, practically every Tuesday, there was a sort of magic that seemed to keep it afloat. Sarasaland wasn't so lucky. Daisy idly wondered if the other kingdoms in the world were surviving or if the planet would just turn into one big gaping shadow hole.

 

And so far, Daisy hadn't been able to do anything to counter it. So far, she'd been the damsel in distress, getting saved last minute from the pit of doom. The first time was her fault. She wouldn't have any trouble admitting to it, her reckless driving throwing her and Ninjetta off a cliff. But the second wasn't her fault. The second one hurt. She was right there when Chai was swallowed whole and she couldn't stop it. Even worse, it seemed to be targeting her, believing her to be some sort of yellow star.

 

She punched the railing.

 

"You'll hurt yourself like that, Princess~" The large beanish man floated gracefully up to the balcony on his flying green bean platform. He was green-skinned, as all beanish were, wearing a white tunic with matching white gloves and shoes. The wind flowed through his red cape and elegant blond hair.

 

"Prince Peasley!" Daisy exclaimed. She hadn't seen him for some time, but he was absolutely unmistakable. Peasley was the prince and hero of the southern Beanbean Kingdom, a long-time ally of the Mushroom Kingdom and Sarasaland. Peach must've sent a letter to him.

 

"The one and only~" He flipped a hand through his hair, brushing it elegantly to the side. He seemed to radiate and light up the place for a moment in his elegance.

 

Despite how amazing Peasley was, he couldn't get her to crack a smile. She wanted to fight this star eater, punch it in its starry face, and be done with it. She didn't want to keep talking, but it seemed like the only thing they could do right now. There just wasn't enough information about this star eater to counteract it. Just how does one punch stars anyway?

 

After sending Ninjetta to assemble the heroes, Daisy lead Peasley to the boardroom. Talking was the only thing to do right now, wasn't it? Peasley seemed to light up the room as he entered, flicking his hair to the side elegantly.

 

"Prince Peasley," Peach greeted him. "I'm glad you could make it. I do hope that the Beanbean Kingdom is fairing well despite the circumstances."

 

Placing his hands heroically back on his hips, Peasley frowned, shaking his head. "I'm afraid not, my fair and graceful princess. The Stardust Fields simply disappeared overnight a week ago! The whole place, turned into a pit of darkness!" While he was being overly dramatic, placing a hand faintly on his forehead, but everyone sitting in the room knew this news was really that bad.

 

The Stardust Fields were a relatively important location, serving as the Beanbean district that bordered the Mushroom Kingdom. Destroying that land effectively cut off trade and communication routes between the two kingdoms, but fortunately the Airport was still up and running, allowing Peasley to arrive safely.

 

"But fear not! I'm here to help!" the prince seemingly perked up. "With the absence of Mr. Red and Mr. Green, I'm here on a secret mission to help end this star eating menace." He did enjoy secret missions, which generally involved investigations and heroics within the Beanbean Kingdom. With the star eater a global threat, Peasley had to travel to execute his daring plan.

  
"I'm glad to have your help," Peach smiled softly. "We can use every bit of help we can. The situation is growing dire quite quickly. I have yet to hear from the other kingdoms. It is possible they have befallen the same fate as Sarasaland, swallowed whole."

 

Daisy frowned sharply at the mention of Sarasaland. She was still incredibly bitter about losing it, something that she would never let go as long as it was gone.

 

"Oh!" the prince exclaimed. "There is one more strangeness which I absolutely should mention. I cannot say if this is indeed related yet, this is certainly a new occurrence."

 

He withdrew a newspaper from his pocket and presented it to the gathered heroes. The headline read in large curved letters, _Strange Fighter Flies Appear in Hoohoo Mountains_. The photo accompanying the article almost appeared blurred. It showed a fighter fly colored strangely, strongly resembling the star eater cloud that attacked the party.

 

"Fighter flies only live in the Stardust Fields," Peasley explained. "After the sudden disappearance of the Fields, these strange, dark fighter flies began appearing in the neighboring Hoohoo Mountains. I have spotted these creatures with mine own eyes. It's as though they've been possessed by the night."

 

Daisy snatched the paper from Peasley's hand, taking a better look at it as she practically pushed it into her own face. "This looks like the same darkness that swallowed Luigi and Mario and the same one that swallowed Chai. Same darkness with dim stars."

 

"Come to think of it," Peach added, "when the star eater first arrived, the Luma looked like this when the star eater possessed it." This star eater was becoming more threatening by the day. It could possess fighter flies. While they lived in the Stardust Fields, they certainly weren't star-related or even star-like. They were flies. What else could it possess and to what end?

 

"Could these incidnets be related? They could," Dr. Toadley noted, waving his hands over the crystal ball. The image hadn't changed since the first image had appeared, the one displaying the four stars in the darkness. The stars had grown dimmer in the past few days, however, offering somewhat of a foreboding message.

 

Professor E.Gadd took the paper from Daisy, pushing his glasses further up his nose as he observed the images. The professor had gotten to know the Beanish and Peasley when he took up residence in the castle town, running a cafe and trying out new inventions. "Fascinating yet frightening," he noted. "I wonder... Will the residents of Sarasaland show up as shadows too?"

 

Daisy bit her lip for a moment, tensing up before turning to shout at him. "Don't say things like that!"

 

"Princess! Everyooooone!" Toadbert ran into the boardroom, once again panicked.

 

"What is it, sonny?" the E.Gadd peered at the toad over the newspaper.

 

"S-something's happening in Mushroom City, by boogity!" Toadbert replied, nearly tripping over his own words. "It's being overrun by strange-looking ninji!"

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The introduction of the last of the allies. It looks like Sarasaland and the Mushroom Kingdom aren't the only ones feeling the pain the star eater's caused. The Star Fields are a pretty cool place. The ground has stars in it and everything seems to be star-shaped. Pity it is overrun by fighter flies.
> 
> It's hard to say what's happened to the other kingdoms in the Mushroom World. Perhaps they are gone too.
> 
> The Beanbean Kingdom is the new land where Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga takes place. I love to include it as the neighboring kingdom as it's good to have other allies join the group. Also Prince Peasley is best bean.


	7. Ninja swarm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Now in the massive industrial Mushroom City, the intrepid heroes separate, leaving Daisy and Ninjetta to investigate alone. Can the heroic pair stop the swarm of ninjis on the poorly named park?

The ride to Mushroom City seemed to take forever as the group sat in silence. Only part of the gathered heroes had chosen to go, which included Peasley, Daisy, Ninjetta, Birdo, and Professor E. Gadd. Half the group was the investigative sort, though Daisy more wanted to get out and do something than just sit around and look at data and talk.

 

Peach had chosen to stay behind and relay any messages which came to the castle. Waluigi stayed with her as an odd form of a bodyguard. He was one of few people to actually survive a disappearing city. Starlow and Yoshi stayed with her as well. Doctor Toadley had returned to his clinic to help calm the hysteria outbreak within Toad Town. News of Sarasaland's near complete disappearance had caused widespread panic. The news about the Stardust Fields wasn't making the situation any better.

 

For the middle of the day, the normally congested Moonview Highway seemed relatively calm. Traffic was flowing steadily and business continued as normal. The City was far enough away from Fortune Street and Sarasaland that the disappearances seemed more like stories in a book than actuality. It was a place unlike any other, easily the largest city within the Mushroom Kingdom. An epicenter for business, the place never seemed to sleep, and the highway was even busy at odd hours in the night. Buildings rose high into the sky, and the streets were wider than rivers.

 

The group disembarked from the mushroom car, and Peasley took a moment to marvel at the place. The Beanbean Kingdom had nothing like this. Their cities were smaller and often closer to the ground, but not without technology. The more modern locations were mostly research and travel facilities, the Kingdom's primary research being light-powered technology and advanced blocks. This was something wholly different.

 

The professor didn't hesitate to whip out his DS and begin gathering readings of the local area. "There are traces of that same energy here," he noted. "Nothing quite like in Chai though. Definitely more subtle but it looks like it's surrounding us, ho ho."

 

Peasley flew up over the heads of the other members of the group on his flying green bean. Cupping his hand over his eyes to shield from the midday sun, Peasley still couldn't see any signs of darkness. He couldn't tell if anything were out of the ordinary, as the city felt so foreign to him.

 

"Probably our best bet is to split up and ask around," Daisy pointed out. "I don't see anything, but someone has. Let's meet back here at sunset."

 

....

 

Despite the group's insistence, Daisy had chosen to travel with only Ninjetta at her side. The star eater was supposedly after her, but Daisy was never one to play the victim. She liked to take things into her own hands, though she had spent one time captive when Tatanga had overtaken her land. That little incident introduced her to Mario then later to Luigi.

 

The group had split four ways, taking the four main directions in the city to fan out. There was no way to cover the entire city in half a day unless they had an entire army at their sides. They were relying on most rumors to guide them to whatever these strange-looking ninji could be. Ninji weren't native to Mushroom City, but instead they had migrated in this world. Most had taken up residence in Sarasaland, but without a home, survivors probably scattered.

 

Daisy folded her arms, tapping her foot as she waited for the light to change and cross the street. She glanced down to see Ninjetta staring back at her nervously. "I'm not a victim, kay?" Daisy frowned sharply.

 

"I never said that, princess," Ninjetta confessed. "I can't see you ever being a victim. I'm just really worried about you."

  
Daisy opened her mouth to retort with some stupid remark, but she stopped herself when she saw how worry-stricken her Ninji friend really was. Ninjetta considered herself a sort of retainer, though Daisy claimed she never needed one. She had never pushed Ninjetta away either.

 

"We're gonna stop this stupid star eater no matter what," Daisy asserted. "We'll beat it senseless until it finally spits up our home and our friends. You'll see."

 

She seemed pretty confident in her words, and Ninjetta was rather inclined to agree. Daisy was strong and determined, and her home and friends mattered more to her than her own well-being. That was where Ninjetta came in, concerning herself with Daisy's well-being in her wake.

 

Daisy looked up to see the light change green, stepping off the curb and into the street.

 

"WAIT!"

 

Daisy and Ninjetta both turned, finding a rather panicked troopa wearing a hoodie and sunglasses pushing his way between the busy population on the sidewalk. He reached the two girls, leaning over and resting his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

 

"It's really you, isn't it?" the troopa seemingly marveled at her, looking her over like he was inspecting a ghost.

 

"Yeah?" Daisy frowned at the troopa, pushing him backwards a bit so she could step back onto the sidewalk. "Anyone who tries to impersonate me gets a swift punch in the face."

 

He hadn't expected the retort, but he continued anyway, "There's this rumor going around that you'll end up like those strange ninji----" He paused as he noticed Ninjetta emerge from behind Daisy's skirt to peer at him curiously. "AAH! NINJI!" A few of the passers-by stopped and paused, staring at both Daisy and Ninjetta, who chose to simply bury herself in the thick pleats of Daisy's skirt.

 

Daisy frowned sharply. "Chill out! That's Ninjetta, my advisor or something. Now you seem to know what's going on, buddy. What's this about strange ninji anyway?" She crouched down to level herself with the troopa, leaving Ninjetta to attempt to rebury herself in Daisy dress. The princess patted her ninji advisor reassuringly on the head.

 

"There's been this strange influx of ninji lately," the troopa replied, motioning with his hands as he explained. "The newspaper thought it was because of what happened to Sarasland, but from what I read, these ninji aren't normal."

 

"They aren't," a businessman toad chimed in, pushing his glasses up his face. "I've seen them! They're wispy like a storm cloud." Setting his briefcase down, he unrolled the newspaper he'd tucked under his arm and flipped through a few pages. Folding the newspaper open, he handed it to Daisy who quickly looked it over. "That picture there, that's one of them."

 

The picture was hard to see and looked fuzzy, but there were definite signs of the subject being a ninji. Unburying her face, Ninjetta peered over to see the picture in the newspaper too. "That ninji looks like the shadow that swallowed Chai, doesn't it?"

 

Daisy squinted at the photo in the paper. "You know, it does. Looks exactly like the luma that got overtaken too." That star eater had been busy since the first day it arrived. It hadn't occurred to her before that the strange ninji could be suffering the same thing that the luma had the day of the party. She bit her lower lip for a moment. "We have to help them somehow, Ninjetta. I don't know how but we have to."

 

The crowd that had gathered around Daisy fell silent for a moment. Daisy didn't have to say much for most of the people to realize that the ninji who had arrived weren't acting on their own.

 

"The last sighting was off the Fly Agaric Byway," a young toad wearing a bright red dress offered. "I've been keeping up with all the news lately. I can take you there."

 

"No need!" a wiggler shouted, crawling up to the crowd then perching up on his hind legs. "Princess, I'm so glad I found you! The strange ninji are swarming Earthtongue Park!"

  
...

 

Earthtongue Park, the newest sighting of the strange ninji, was only a few blocks away.

 

"Who _names_ these places?" Daisy frowned, pulling at her skirt as she attempted to run. Her strides were long but careful not to catch her heels on the petticoats and trip. Several of the bystanders tagged along, though some of the smaller ones had trouble keeping up with Daisy's speed.

 

Ninjetta hopped along, severely worried about what they would find. "Princess! Maybe we should call the others!"

 

"Yeah, you get on that," Daisy frowned. "You have that GB thingy anyway."

 

Ninjetta fished for the thing in her bag. It was small and colored golden yellow with black letters across the front, stating ' _GB Advanced Communicator 9001.'_ What a strange name for the thing, but the Professor did have a tendency to name everything strangely. At least it wasn't another SodaPop.

 

The ninji flipped the device open, pressing the buttons until something happened. The screen flipped on, making some crackling noises before making a popping sound. She really wasn't sure what was going on, as the Professor didn't entirely explain the device in terms she understood. Pressing a few more buttons, she shouted at it, "Come to Earthtongue Park!" She received a few "Okays" and "understood" from the other end before she closed the thing and shoved it back into the bag. It seemed to work so she would just have to keep her princess out of trouble until the other three arrived as backup.

 

Continuing to be trouble, Daisy skidded around the corner of the building before coming to an abrupt stop. Ninjetta collided into her back, rebounding and knocking into the wiggler behind her.

 

"Ho~ly crap," Daisy marveled. Before them stood the park. The ground was coated with a strange black fog. The strange shadow ninji stood among it, surrounding a center mass of ninji jumping about like wild animals swarming prey.

 

"B-back around the corner quickly." Daisy shooed the group back around the building, plastering herself against the wall. That was a few too many ninji to handle by herself, and they seemed rather busy tearing apart whatever was in the center of the mass.

 

She paused, nervously running her fingers around the engagement band underneath her gloves as she attempted to collect her thoughts. Those ninji were swarming something, perhaps a helpless victim. Her mind drifted for a moment to the possessed luma that had swallowed Luigi and Mario whole. She couldn't imagine what a swarm of ninji could do, but at least their mouths weren't as large.

 

"Stay here," Daisy instructed, pushing off from the wall.

 

"W-wait, princess!" Ninjetta panicked, pulling at the bottom of Daisy's dress in a futile attempt to stop her. "What are you doing?"

 

"Those ninji, they're swarming something or some _one_ ," Daisy replied, fighting against Ninjetta's pull. She glanced around the edges of the park, spotting a baseball bat within reach. "I'm going to stir them up a bit. Maybe they'll recognize me." It was a long shot, but she hadn't quite wiped the idea from her mind. Ninji had migrated to Chai, taking up residence in the castle town. Daisy was rather accustomed to seeing them and they her. "And if not, I'll beat them senseless if I have to."

 

Shaking Ninjetta from her skirt, Daisy stepped on the bat, catching it as it flipped up. "Alright, ya shadow ninji!" she shouted at the swarm, brandishing the bat menacingly at them. "Scatter or I'll beat your faces!"

 

If Ninjetta had lips, she would be biting them right now. She stood firmly next to Daisy, though inside, she was shaking up a storm. Her heart beat so fast she thought it would beat out of her chest.

 

The shadow ninji turned, almost in unison, to stare at Daisy. "Survivor." Their eyes glowed like faint stars in the darkness, and the shadows oozed from them. The picture in the newspaper had done them justice. "Princess." The swarming ninji had ceased their assault, turning their attention towards Daisy. "Khenet."

 

Daisy firmly stood her ground, drawing the bat to her shoulder as if playing baseball. "Come on, shadows! Come ta Daisy!" She nudged her ninji advisor, pushing her out of harm's way with her foot. She couldn't have anything happen to Ninjetta.

 

The shadow ninji approached slowly at first until the front lines suddenly dashed, leaping into the air for a silent coordinated attack. Narrowing her eyes, Daisy took a swing, knocking several of the ninji out of the air and back into the park. The remaining ninji grabbed her shoulders, attempting to gnaw on her arms with their tiny mouths.

 

Truthfully, Daisy felt terrible striking her own people. Ever since the ninji had migrated, she considered them her own as if they'd always been there. The pidgit and ravens fell under the same category. However, right now, she didn't have much of a choice. The ninji were attacking viciously, even if not by their own will, and Daisy would defend herself and those around her.

 

Using her free hand, she punched the ninji on her shoulders, knocking them off her though they took part of her sleeves with them. Another wave leapt forward while a third wave moved in for a low assault, gnawing and pulling on her dress. While she continued to stand her ground, knocking the ninji away, more continued to come. Ninjetta leapt forward, hopping on the ninji to knock them off their path. The wiggler who'd come with them began throwing random turnips to thwart the ninji as well.

 

Even with the assistance, Daisy was becoming overwhelmed. More ninji had emerged from the shadows, replacing the defeated ninji quickly. As they attacked, they chanted 'Khenet' over and over again. Daisy continued to fight against them, ignoring their strange words. Then a flash of light enveloped her, driving the shadow ninji quickly away and back into the dark mist. Another flash of light and the strange mist collected into a large ball then disappeared from sight.

 

With the park now visible, Daisy and the others now saw the ninji weren't swarming anything but a stray beach ball. Had it all been a trap? Sighing, Daisy flopped backwards on the grass, her dress a shredded a mess.

 

"Looks like I came just in time, my fair golden maiden." Peasley floated down from behind Daisy on his flying bean. He disembarked, now standing on the grass as he glanced over to where the strange mist once floated. The park had returned to its former state, looking green and lively.

 

"I thought they were attacking someone," Daisy confessed, leaning forward to prop herself up on her knees. She discarded the bat behind her, rather upset with the turn of events. She wanted to be the hero, not the victim. "Turns out it's just a beach ball."

 

....

 

"Another Khenet." The star eater closed his eyes, hearing the ninji return in the shadows. The information they'd sent back during the fight was troubling. The presence of another khenet was troubling.

 

Khenet was the color of eternal persistence. While the star eater had certainly acquired his own khenet, the presence of another could counteract his work, restoring the world to its original form. This girl certainly possessed the power of khenet and her will was incredibly strong and unbending, even in the face of immeasurable odds. Her allies would prove troublesome as well.

 

"Two khenet cannot exist. I will have to deal with this one accordingly."

  
  


 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mushroom City is first featured in Mario Kart Double Dash! It’s a big city you have to race through and avoid bomb cars, wiggler buses, and regular autos. Hitting a mushroom car would give you a boost, supposedly, though I’d never tried. Moonview Highway from Mario Kart Wii supposedly takes place on the main highway stretching through Mushroom City.
> 
> The two odd names mentioned, Fly Agaric and Earthtongue, are types of fungus. A fly agaric looks a lot like the standard toadstools prevalent across most of the Mushroom Kingdom. The earthtongue looks like a tongue sticking out of the ground.


	8. Dark stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the swarms continue, Peach, Waluigi, and Starlow attempt to investigate the damage done at Fortune Street. What could possibly be lurking down within that deep bottomless hole? Dark stars

"Wow that hole is huge," Starlow marveled at what remained of Fortune Street. The hole was identical to what Daisy had described when detailing the devastation at Birabuto. The hole seemed to go on forever with no bottom in sight. The edges had turned black like a starless night sky.  
  
Starlow ventured out above the gaping hole, hovering above it, leaving Peach and Waluigi on the edge. Yoshi had stayed behind at the castle in hopes of hearing word from the group in Mushroom City. Nearly two days had passed since they left and still no word. While hoping for the best, Peach had taken the investigation into her own hands, venturing out.  
  
"HELLO YELLO!" Starlow shouted at the ravine, then paused, waiting for an echo to return to her. She waited and waited before growing impatient and gritting her teeth, frowning sharply. "It's like there's no end to this! Like a black hole at the bottom of whatever this is!"  
  
Waluigi slouched, staring at the hole. That thing had sucked up his home and his business. But there was one thing missing from this hole and it wasn't the buildings. It was that strange man with the stardust hair. The man had appeared suddenly, chanting some strange words then vacuumed Wario into his cape, then promptly left. Waluigi hadn't made mention of the stardust man quite yet, not quite able to put into words what he saw. He wasn't the most eloquent of speakers, preferring to let Wario do the talking. But Wario wasn't here and Waluigi felt generally unable to vocalize what he'd seen and the pain festering in his heart.  
  
Starlow turned, flying downwards into the gaping hole in hopes of finding some information about it. Professor E. Gadd had taking countless readings of the place, spitting out charts and numbers and things she just didn't understand. She wanted to see the thing for herself, feel the energy surrounding it.  
  
"Do be careful, Starlow!" Peach shouted at her, cupping her hands around her mouth to amplify her voice. Like Starlow's, Peach's words didn't return in an echo.  
  
Starlow didn't heed the warning particularly well, diving deeper and deeper into the hole. The world around her grew dark as if she'd flown out of the atmosphere and into space. Stars twinkled faintly in the distance, as if calling out for help.  
  
"Hello?" she called out, journeying deeper into the hole. "HELLO YELLO?"  
  
The faint stars began to twinkle in reply. _Come closer. Help us.  
  
_ "Who are you?" Starlow shouted. "How did you get down here?"  
  
The stars continued to twinkle and blink, a few shifting around and moving erratically. _Come closer. Help us.  
  
_ "Well I can't help you if I don't know how you got here," Starlow added, not moving from where she floated. Stars moving like that was a bit unusual, even for a mysterious pit. She had to remind herself she wasn't looking up at the sky.  
  
 _Come closer. Help us,_ the stars repeated.  
  
Starlow gritted her teeth, frowning so sharply it distorted her face. She was growing frustrated with their repetition. She didn't particularly have much patience for this. "Look, you need to give me something to work with here. I'm not a miracle worker." While star sprites had a considerable amount of magical prowess which could _look_ like miracles, they certainly couldn't do such magic with too many unknowns. It was too risky.  
  
 _Come closer. Why won't you help us?_ the stars twinkled, blinking furiously.  
  
Frustrated and thoroughly annoyed, Starlow started feeling that this entirely setup was just a bit off. The faint stars were calling out to her like sirens and she had heeded their call, venturing far away from the surface. Now it was time to jet while she had the chance.  
  
"YELLO GOODBYE!" she shouted, turning towards the small orb of light indicating the opening of the hole and darting upwards, flying as quickly as she could. She had quickly become overwhelmed with a sense of danger. Her disappearing wasn't going to help anyone, though the thought of getting captured and busting the others out did cross her mind. It was a frivolous thought, as she wasn't even completely certain they actually were alive.  
  
Darting upwards, she could hear something shift and rustle behind her. It sounded like an odd combination of wings. Then came the deafening sound of ravens. Upset ravens could scream loud enough to cause localized earthquakes, and it sounded like several were following her ascent. Glancing to the side, she caught sight of the stars moving upward beside her. She couldn't tell if something were crawling up a wall or simply flying upward. It was far too dark to distinguish the difference.  
  
The raven cry bellowed upwards and out of the hole, shaking the nearby ground. Peach covered her ears quickly, attempting to regain her bearings. Waluigi stabilized first, his refined skills from years of practicing tennis working to his advantage. He grabbed the back of Peach's dress to prevent her from falling into the nearby hole. While normally at odds, Waluigi knew that Peach was key in finding Wario and wasn't about to let her go just yet.  
  
Starlow burst out of the hole as quickly as she could, rocketing upwards toward the sky. Behind her followed the 'stars' which had followed her. Now in the sunlight, the stars revealed themselves to be pidgit floating on mist-like clouds instead of carpets. The edges of their bodies had grown fuzzy, spewing out a nebulous black mist. Their eyes glowed yellow as they pursued the star sprite.  
  
"Peach! Take cover!" Starlow shouted as she attempted to outmaneuver the pidgit in the sky.  
  
Ravens emerged from the hole, standing in front of Peach and Waluigi. They too had been overtaken by the nebulous mist, their eyes glowing red as they stared down the human pair. The raven in front opened its mouth and began screaming and crying, knocking both Peach and Waluigi off their feet. Recovering, Peach did the first thing which came to mind: swat the raven with her parasol. The raven effectively quieted, retreating back into the hole. Surprisingly the others followed suit, crawling back down the ravine's walls.  
  
"Victory!" Waluigi shouted at the retreating creatures.  
  
The pidgit suddenly retreated as well, withdrawing back into the hole and quickly disappearing from sight in a puff of black smoke.  
  
"Starlow?!" Peach called out, yet no reply came. The pidgit had taken Starlow with them into the darkness.  
  
....  
  
Daisy's group returned the next day, finding the situation at home wasn't much better than theirs. They had stayed in Mushroom City longer than planned to search for Birdo. She'd mysteriously disappeared sometime the first afternoon and never returned to the designated meeting location. Several residents reported she'd encountered the shadow ninji late that afternoon and fought with them. No one could quite account to where she'd gone. Daisy left a message with the newspaper to print. If anyone spotted Birdo, the newspaper would send word back to the castle as to her location.  
  
After Daisy recounted the ninji incident, Peach detailed the attack by the ravens and the pidgit and Starlow's unfortunate disappearance.  
  
"Could we have been wrong? We could have." Dr. Toadly frowned behind his veil, tapping his crystal ball. The image on the thing hadn't changed since the four stars had shown up earlier this week.  
  
"What do you mean, doctor?" Peach asked, shifting uncomfortably in her chair. The board room had become the center for all their meetings since the disappearance of Birabuto. It had started with a large assemblage of the greatest heroes in the World, but one by one, the heroes were disappearing.  
  
"Had we thought the star eater was after Daisy? We did," Dr. Toadley answered himself. "Yet the last two disappearances _haven't_ been Daisy, and Starlow _is_ an actual yellow star. Could there be more to this puzzle? Yes there could, but it is still entirely unknown. Could Daisy's life still be in danger? It could. I would bet my cap on it."  
  
Daisy frowned, leaning forward on the table. She propped herself up on her elbows, her hands knit in front of her face as she furrowed her eyebrows in deep thought. She looked an absolute mess, scratched up and her dress torn from her skirmish with the shadow pidgit. She'd lost her shoe at some point, choosing to continue along without it.  
  
"So far, all the shadow creatures have been residents of Sarasaland. First the ninji, then the pidgit and ravens. This can't be just some coincidence." Truthfully Daisy wasn't sure where she was going with it, but there definitely was something there. It couldn't explain why Birdo and Starlow had been taken. Star sprites and birdo were both residents in the Mushroom Kingdom and not Sarasaland. Neither was truly known for being migratory.  
  
Peach tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Certainly a valid point. Perhaps the star eater required minions. Sarasaland is known for being particularly resilient and strong."  
  
The land had only been attacked once and stayed relatively unnoticed on the battle scene. It was better known for commerce and business, as well as its excellent vacation spots. The culture was diverse, and the residents endured a vast variety of climates and landscapes. The other kingdoms weren't so fortunate. The BeanBean Kingdom was more rural with great scientific research, and the Mushroom Kingdom seemed to be attacked every Tuesday.  
  
"What about that world engine thing Rosie had talked about?" Daisy pointed out. "Well that garbled piece of a message she'd sent through that luma. What if the star eater---" she cut herself off abruptly for a moment. Her own thoughts were even disturbing her. The others glanced at her curiously.  
  
With a sigh she continued. "What if the star eater requires _strong people_ to power the world engine?" Starlow and Birdo both were incredibly strong people. "And what if after destroying Sarasaland and Fortune Street that it simply ran out of steam?"  
  
Peach bit her bottom lip. Daisy had brought up a point she hadn't or even wanted to consider. She couldn't rule out the possibility, though she wished it weren't true. She wanted her friends to return, not be consumed for some world engine or bad galactic magic.  
  
Sitting on the table, crossing his knees, Prince Peasley considered the situation for a moment. "I got it!" he exclaimed suddenly, hitting his left fist into his open right hand. "These shadow creatures were certainly affected by light. I'll venture alone on a secret mission!" Peasly was rather fond of secret missions, and he undertook them quite frequently. It wasn't exactly a secret mission this time, as he was announcing it, but he was never one for complete secrecy. He liked being loud and glorious as well. "I will search for clues and signs of this engine. I wouldn't stand for putting both beautiful princesses in harm's way again."  
  
"Hey, I'm not some victim, kay?" Daisy prodded Peasley in the back of his shoulder.  
  
"Certainly not, dear golden princess," he agreed. "I've seen you fight and bloody yourself." She was definitely strong, and he couldn't deny that. Regardless, he wanted to do what he could to help out, and that was usually 'secret' missions.  
  
"Oh Daisy," Peach giggled. Her friend was always the rough-and-tumble sort, but right now, such danger wasn't really good for any of them. "Any additional information would certainly help, Prince Peasley," she nodded. "If there is a world engine out there, we must stop it. If you find something, please do not engage it yourself. We will happily fight by your side. Isn't that right, Daisy?"  
  
Daisy emphatically stood up, flexing her arms. "Damn right it is. I want to break that world engine and beat that star eater until it spits up our friends!" She could deal with her home being a bottomless pit but to steal her friends and use them for energy was unacceptable. She could rebuild her home, but she couldn't rebuild Luigi.  
  
.......  
  
Prince Peasley left early in the morning, flying on his green bean. He wasn't entirely certain what he was looking for, but the past few days had left him with a lot to consider. These shadow people were becoming a threat, though it seemed the threats were localized to friends of Peach, Daisy included. He considered that friends of Daisy would be targeted as well, yet the only friend who hadn't been swallowed whole with Birabuto was Ninjetta, and the ninji hardly left Daisy's side. This was his only lead, and he planned on visiting many of Peach's closest friends, possibly following the trail of shadow people in the process.  
  
Daisy had risen early, not even bothering to fully get dressed before seeing Peasley off. Still standing in her pajamas, she punched Peasley in the shoulder, threatening to punch him harder if he didn't return alive. Daisy had so few people left alive in her life. She'd lost her people, her home, her entire country, and now the star eater was possibly after her. While she only knew Peasley through Peach, she still wanted to see him return alive.  
 __  
Still not dressed in proper clothing, Daisy flopped down into a chair at the dining room table. Her hair was still rumpled, matching her equally rumpled pajamas. She'd misbuttoned her shirt, leaving a button at the top and two buttonholes attempting to cover the same button about halfway down. She leaned forward, propping her face up with one hand as she turned sideways in the chair, halfway sitting but mostly slouching in it. One leg was properly bent while the other was outstretched, causing her to slouch sideways.  
  
"Shouldn't you at least get dressed, Princess?!" Ninjetta jumped frantically next to her liege. It was troubling to see her so upset, but who could really blame her? The star eater had taken nearly everything from her and was even threatening her own existence.  
  
"In what?" Daisy retorted. "That was my last dress!" It wasn't exactly in the best of shape either. After the shadow ninji had assaulted her, the dress was left torn and bloodied. Even if the toads had managed to scrub the blood out, it still was a shredded mess. She considered for a moment just ripping the dress in two and wearing it anyway as a means to say the star eater couldn't get her down. It wasn't a bad idea, actually.  
  
She tapped her chin thoughtfully, watching the doorway to the dining room. She hadn't seen Peach all morning, which wasn't too entirely unusual. The pink princess was probably busy with trying to assuage the fears of the populace.  
  
A rather large exaggerated screech shook Daisy from her thoughts, literally as she slid from her chair, landing hard on the ground. "What the...?!" she rubbed her butt gingerly, hoping she hadn't done something stupid like broken her tailbone. Stupid pointless bone.  
  
Ninjetta had ceased her incessant hopping, glancing worried towards the balcony. "That really sounded like a raven crying," she pointed out. Her voice was laced with a worry and doubt not that the sound came from a raven but what a raven was actually doing here. The last sighting of ravens had resulted in losing Starlow. That these creatures were capable of capturing a star sprite was frightening.  
  
Daisy scampered to the balcony, peering out towards the town. The streets in closest block in Toad Town had been coated with an eerie black mist, the same mist which had appeared in the park in Mushroom City. The shadows were returning, moving about, attacking something. "Not again!" Daisy quickly hopped onto the balcony railing, only slightly deterred by the ninji yanking on the bottom of her pajamas.  
  
"Princess! That's dangerous!" Ninjetta warned.  
  
Daisy turned, frowning at her. "Duh." As if she wasn't aware of the danger. She'd already thrown herself into the face of danger a few times. Once more wasn't going to deter her. "Now are you coming or not?"  
  
Ninjetta knew fairly well that objecting wasn't going to stop Daisy, so she simply conceded, and the two took a leap of faith off the balcony. Landing safely on the castle walls, they darted forward, taking another leap onto a nearby toad house.  
  
Breaking off a nearby branch, Daisy leapt from the house, swinging the branch madly like a sword. The shadow ravens strayed away from her yet continued to surround Peach and whoever else was trapped within the shadow mist.  
  
The nearby raven opened its mouth, releasing an ear-shattering cry, shaking the nearby houses like an earthquake. Daisy quickly dropped the stick, covering her ears in an attempt to stop the incessant ringing caused by the scream. Despite the deafening pain, Ninjetta leapt into action, landing on the crying raven to quiet it. The creature stopped screaming then receded into the shadows.  
  
Without the noise, Daisy picked up the stick, resuming her assault, knocking ravens away from the frightened toads left and right.  
  
"Daisy, what are you doing?!" Peach demanded, smacking a raven with her parasol. She'd arrived, drawn to the screaming as Daisy had, though she chose to arrive in a more suitable manner, fully dressed and properly groomed. Waluigi had arrived with her and he quickly took to kicking the shadow creatures into submission.  
  
"Protecting this place!" she replied quickly, turning to give Peach a reassuring look. Her words were quick yet confident. She had her mind set. "I can't let them take anyone else!"  
  
Peach frowned at her friend. How stubborn she could be. "They're not after me, they're after you! You're putting yourself in danger!"  
  
"I'm going to get everyone back! Just you wait!" Daisy didn't care about throwing herself into the face of danger. She lived a relatively safe life, away from the kidnappings and villains other kingdoms and lands seemed to have in excess. Even when she stayed at Peach's castle, she remained relatively safe. It was time for her to act. She wasn't going to play the victim.  
  
The shadow ravens had grown impatient with the conversation between the two princesses. Working as if a single unit, they began swarming and piling upon one another, forming somewhat of a raven mountain. While Daisy's back was turned to them, Peach was not, and she began staring at the creatures, fearing what they might do.  
  
Thinking quickly, Peach grabbed Daisy by the sleeve, sharply pulling her away then pushing her straight into Waluigi. "I can't let it end like this." If the star eater needed yellow to complete whatever this world engine was, Peach couldn't let it have her, even if it meant sacrificing herself.  
  
Daisy stumbled into Waluigi, tripping on her own feet before colliding with the wiry man. The collision took the two to the ground. "Sunnova!" Daisy cursed, pushing off him and back up to her feet.  
  
"Peach!!!" She turned angrily, preparing to return to the fight. She was going to prove to Peach one way or another she was the hero she claimed to be. But Daisy quickly paused, staring at the main road. It was empty. The ravens were gone, and so was Peach. She stared, horrified, biting her bottom lip. "Peach..... She's... gone."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And the sudden disappearance of two key characters in the story. While Peach and Starlow are certainly two of my favorites, they had to go.


	9. No place in this world

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Peach now missing, Daisy unloads her frustration on Waluigi. But it seems the pair have more in common than they perhaps believed. As the unlikely alliance forms, allies and adversaries alike prepare for the upcoming battles

Daisy hadn't moved a muscle. She continued to stare at the empty street of Toad Town where only a moment ago a large battle roared. Shadow ravens had emerged in a wisp of black, starless mist, bringing with them their deafening cries. Then as soon as they'd arrived, they disappeared back to wherever they came from, taking Peach with them.  
  
Waluigi stood as well, gaping with his jaw nearly unhinged as he stared at the street. He wasn't entirely sure how to process this quite yet. This attack was like the one at the gaping hole which had claimed Starlow as a prize. This time, the prize was Peach, and she'd willingly sacrificed herself. "Waaa... Why'd she do that?" The words sort of spilled out without any thought.  
  
Daisy felt her blood boil quickly. Every chance she got, someone was trying to protect her and all she wanted to do was protect them. She turned to Waluigi and suddenly began unloading all her pain and frustration. "Don't you get it?!" Daisy shouted at him. "Peach sacrificed herself for us! We owe it to _her_ to protect what's left of this world and stop the star eater!"

 

She shouted at him like he didn't understand it. But truthfully, he did. The star eater had already taken Wario, his only family, from him. Waluigi didn't have any land or people to protect. He only had the strip of businesses he and Wario owned on Fortune Street. But that was all gone, stolen away from him, driving him to make a shaky alliance with the princesses.

 

He couldn't call them enemies, really. He had a secret crush on Daisy, one he never really expressed or told anyone. The more she yelled at him, babbling on about saving the people and insulting how he talked about himself in third person, the more he realized that she'd never reciprocate the feelings. There were times where he wished he could have what Luigi had, but he could never be that goody-two-shoes. It wasn't how he was.

 

He placed a finger on her lips. She had to stop shouting at him. Her words were nearly as deafening as the screaming ravens' cries. "Waluigi lost too," he interrupted her. "Wario is gone. Fortune Street is gone. I have something to fight for too. No one cheats Waluigi and gets away with it."

 

She paused. She hadn't stopped to consider how Waluigi was feeling. She never really considered him a normal person. He was more of an enigma who could bend and contort in inhuman ways. But she could now see it, the pain Peach had seen him when he'd first arrived at the castle. She wasn't entirely sure of their relationship, whether or not Waluigi and Wario were even related, but family could exist beyond the boundaries of blood relation. She knew that Wario was really important to him, and now he was gone. His small wedge of land in the kingdom had been swallowed whole, much like her own. He'd been outdone, bested by the shadows. Even his rival was gone. He really had nothing.  
  
Right now, they weren't too different. They'd both lost everything.

 

She sighed, calming her nerves. The pain was still sharply stinging her heart, but she needed to take a page from Peach's book. She needed to have a bit of compassion. She was never good at such matters, usually wedging herself into a conversation or making demands. Her style of rule was even hands-on as she liked to be among her own people and get her hands dirty. Diplomacy wasn't exactly her strong point.  
  
Daisy placing a hand on Waluigi's shoulder. "Look. I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking straight." Neither of them was at this point, but she had to attempt to be understanding. She wasn't very good at this heart-to-heart stuff, but right now, she needed an ally. Fighting alone wasn't working. While she wasn't entirely sure how much thought Waluigi put into things, she knew he was excellent at cheating, more so than anyone seemed to realize.  
  
And if the star eater, cheated, so should they. "Let's work together and stop fighting. It's time we turned this war to our favor. We'll cheat that star eater together."  
  
He didn't take much time considering the idea. She was staring to speak his language. He finally closed his mouth, offering her a confident nod.  
  
....  
  
The world had grown dark, the ground cold beneath her hands. She wasn't quite certain how long she'd been lying face down on the ground or where said ground actually was. Last she could recall was throwing Daisy from the swarm in a last ditch effort to protect the yellow star.  
  
Untwisting herself from her petticoats, she took to her feet, realizing she'd lost a shoe at some point. Kicking the other off, she felt the cold ground beneath her feet. It felt like a castle floor with the consistency of stone.  
  
A light in the distance drew her attention and picking up her skirt, she ran towards it, entering the open doorway. A man stood silhouetted by the lights. His hair was long and his body was covered by a cloak. The screens before him flickered with images of Toad Town and Mushroom City, playing scenes of the recent shadow creatures swarming both locations. Another monitor replayed Starlow's decent into the abyss.  
  
"I am impressed by your persistence, Pink." His voice was deep and somewhat raspy. "I had not expected another to possess such power."  
  
"Who are you?" Peach demanded. "Are you responsible for the destruction plaguing our lands?"  
  
"Destruction is necessary for rebirth," the man corrected her. As he turned to face her, star dust fell from his hair, sparkling against the light of the images.  
  
"Foolishness!" she shouted at him. "How can you throw away all these lives so easily? Who are you?!"  
  
He ignored her demands, studying her for a moment. Her color representation had no word in the ancient language, so she had no place in his plans. "I am called Seth," he finally replied after a moment of silence. "I am a Starborne. I fix broken worlds."  
  
She'd never heard of a Starborne, nor had Rosalina ever spoken of one. "You're the star eater, aren't you?!" It's the only thing that made sense. While no one had mentioned seeing a man before, the images playing behind him were enough evidence against him.  
  
"Such harsh names," the man countered. "I repair the stars. The powers of recreation are immensely strong here, stronger than anywhere else within the cosmos. With these four stars, I can fix all the worlds."  
  
His talk of stars matched up with the stars Dr. Toadley had seen within the crystal ball. There were four stars in the darkness. Peach paused for a moment, considering that if he'd already begun the so-called recreation, perhaps he already had all four stars and Daisy wasn't truly the target.  
  
"Our world isn't broken!" she objected. "It has its flaws, but certainly that is hardly enough to completely destroy it and recreate it in a new way."  
  
"The decision is not yours to make," Seth corrected her, taking a step forward. "You have no place within this new world, Pink. Yet I have other plans for you. I shall make use of your power."  
  
...

  
Daisy rummaged through the massive closet. She'd left dresses over at Peach's castle before, but the one left in the room she normally stayed in was currently in shreds. Her pajamas weren't in much better shape after the battle that morning with the shadow ravens. If she was going to help save the world from this star eater monster, then she needed something to wear. Fighting in her underwear wasn't going to help anyone.  
  
She'd split up from Waluigi earlier as the two prepared in their own ways for the coming battles. This time, instead of waiting for something to happen, they were going to chase the clues and find the star eater themselves. It was the only option they had left.  
  
Digging deeper into the closet, she discovered an odd dress she had completely forgotten about. It was her old style of wear, bright yellow with white scalloped accents. Quickly pulling it on, she realized why she'd abandoned it in the back of the wardrobe. The bodice was too short and began to rip as she attempted to adjust it. Frustrated, she emerged from the closet searching for a pair of scissors.  
  
Ninjetta watched her curiously as she took to dismembering the dress. She ripped the sleeves off, cutting the edges smooth. Carefully she removed the bodice from the skirt, clipping the bodice just above the thick white sash. She attempted to cut the top evenly, but with the rips, the result was somewhat crooked, and she simply conceded to it. Cutting some more, she cut slits up the sides to allow for more range of movement.  
  
Slipping into each piece, she admired her odd two-pieced creation in the mirror. "Not bad." But even with a dress with high mobility, she needed something to protect herself. If the past battles were any indication, she needed better protection than just bare skin. She turned back to the wardrobe, tapping her lips thoughtfully. There was an excessive amount of pink in that closet, none of which was going to help her at this point.  
  
Then it suddenly dawned on her. Peach had made mention of a room in the lower levels, an armory of sorts which had existed since the inception of the Kingdom. She told Daisy of tales of past knights which reigned in the world in the distant past. Grabbing the pair of heels she'd found in the closet, Daisy took to running down the stairs, Ninjetta frantically hopping behind her. The stairs were spiraled tightly, and the ninji nearly tumbled down them.  
  
Memory served Daisy well and she quickly found the room Peach had detailed within the cellars. It wasn't locked, but it felt like no one had opened the door for centuries. Much of the room was covered with woven tarps coated in a thick layer of dust. Ignoring the dust bunnies, Daisy pulled the tarps away, revealing a rather large armory and several sets of greaves and gauntlets. One set caught her attention. Instead of decorations of engraved mushrooms or stars, the set featured a daisy-like pattern over where the knee and elbow would go. She wasn't entirely keen on history, but she knew that Sarasaland and the Mushroom Kingdom had been allies for ages. It was entirely possible that this set of armor belonged to one of her own ancestors. Unbuckling the armor, she pressed it firmly against her, finding it to fit so perfectly it felt the armor was made especially for her. "Alright!"  
  
.....  
  
Professor E. Gadd had busied himself with gathering readings and metrics on the recent attack. He'd spent the better part of the morning sniffing out whatever clues he could from the main street in Toad Town. Noon came and went, and he soon returned to the board room to sort out his findings, bringing Doctor Toadley with him.  
  
The two were debating the findings when Waluigi arrived, dropping a rather large amassment of unlit bob-ombs, bows, arrows, and miscellaneous items on the table. He had armored himself up with whatever soccer gear he could find.  
  
"Ho ho, quite the arsenal you have there, sonny!" the professor exclaimed.  
  
Waluigi offered a confident nod. "It's Waluigi time." The star eater wanted a war, and he was prepared to throw everything he had at it.  
  
The professor wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but it seemed the kid had a handle on things. "Ohoho, excellent!" he clapped his hands together. "We're still analyzing the data, so you'll have to sit tight for a bit."  
  
Sitting tight wasn't exactly one of Waluigi's favorite things to do. He flopped down awkwardly into one of the chairs, pulling out a game system from his pocket. It was a fully functional prototype Wario had made some time ago for his game company. The plan at the time was to manufacture WarioWare units, but it fell through and the design was changed complete. While he wasn't as much of a gamer as Wario, Waluigi kept the working model. Propping his feet up on the table, he fiddled with the game system and turned it on, attempting to best his high score.  
  
Waluigi had barely finished the first level when Daisy burst into the room donning the armor she'd found and the dress she'd disassembled into a battle dress. She strapped a sword to her side, one with daisy carvings in the blade, with two small daggers tucked into her waistband. The backside of the greaves had been fashioned into a small bladed edge at the ankles.  
  
"Do you look ready for a war? You do," Dr. Toadley commented.  
  
"That's right!" Daisy announced proudly. "I'm ready to take the battle to that stupid star eater!"  
  
"Ho ho, just in time too, deary!" Professor E. Gadd announced, bouncing up and down gleefully in his chair. "I believe I found your first lead!"  
  
"Seriously?" Daisy exclaimed, rather excited they were finally making progress on this star eater investigation. "Where to?"  
  
"Ohoho, it's not too far from here!" the professor replied. "The trail leads to Mushroom Gorge, and it's strong. Get there quickly so we can finally catch this thing!"

 

 


	10. A new challenger approaches

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Equipped and now armed to the teeth, the intrepid heroes travel to the Mushroom Gorge for investigation on a new mysterious collection of shadows. But what could be waiting for them at the familiar race track?

Mushroom Gorge was relatively close to Toad Town, situated in a deep ravine. The place was most noted for its large toadstools sprouting up from the depths of somewhere below the land. The toadstools were bouncy and the roads were sharp, making it a prime location for a race track. The ravine itself seemed impossibly deep with no bottom in sight, simply clouds and mist obscuring the depths. The season wasn't prime for racing, so the track was currently closed, leaving the place a veritable ghost town.

  
Waluigi and Daisy arrived by motorbike, coming to a halt where the banner for the finish line often stood. The place felt lonely without everyone there, waiting for Lakitu to wave the flag and start the race. Instead it was the two of them fully armored up and armed to the teeth on motorbikes borrowed from Peach's garage. The two of them looked silly on Peach's bikes, but they took what they could to travel. Neither was particularly fond of pink, but everything Peach owned was color-coordinated.  
  
Ninjetta clung on to Daisy's waist for dear life. The last time they'd gone riding, Daisy had recklessly thrown both of them off the edge of the large gaping hole where Birabuto once stood. With most of the population from Birabuto now gone and now in an entirely different, she wasn't expecting a rescue, silently hoping that Daisy wouldn't be too reckless, especially given her current state of mind after Peach had sacrificed herself to protect Daisy. Lakitu wasn't here to fish them out of the ravine either. They were truly on their own, just the three of them hunting some anomaly.  
  
The Gorge was hauntingly silent. Not even the breeze whistled through the area, leaving the trees still in the afternoon sun. Daisy shielded her eyes from the sun with a gloved hand, searching for any signs of movement. Nothing. She'd been here many times before but not once had she actually been creeped out by the place. Today was the exception.  
  
Professor E. Gadd had gifted Daisy with a DS of her own, colored gold with a simplified interface and communication built in. The DS was the professor's updated version of the GBA communication device, allowing for a multitude of readings of the area as well as transmission to the mainframe for data processing. The unit also functioned as a communication device and locator, if she found herself lost or kidnapped. Fortunately the professor didn't give it some stupid name, keeping it a DS, named after the two screens on the unit.  
  
Pulling the creation from the pouch on her belt, she flipped it open, letting the device do all the work and eventually spit out some readable information that made sense to someone other than the professor. Sure enough, the readings confirmed a strange amount of energy coming from further down the track.  
  
"Looks like that energy's coming from the cavern," Daisy noted, pointing further up the track. The two had ridden the track at least a dozen times over. It was a small track, and the cavern wasn't too far ahead. Almost literally a hop, skip, and a jump away over a few toadstools and a bridge. "C'mon, let's go."  
  
Wordlessly they rode down the path. Had it not been for the roar of the engines, the canyon would have remained deadly quiet. They crossed the bridge, using the bouncy mushroom to skillfully hop the ravines. Daisy pulled to a stop at the cave's entrance, turning off the bike and propping up against the wall. Ninjetta hopped off, returning to Daisy's side.  
  
Waluigi followed suit, taking a moment to peer over the edge of the track. The Gorge had always been like an abyss. It seemed to go forever downward, making it particularly a bad idea to fall off. The Gorge looked as it always did. The mushrooms sprung up from below, poking through clouds which had gathered a ways down in the abyss, perhaps a dozen or so yards below the track. No signs of shadows or stars or mist whatsoever.  
  
Daisy took to observing the edges of the cavern with the DS unit from the professor. It beeped and booped a few times as it gathered information about the surrounding area. The readings it returned were incredibly high numbers, none of which had any particular significance to the princess. They were just high numbers printed in large, bold, red text which usually indicated a bad thing.  
  
The cavern had its normal dark bluish green hue with luminescent fungus and lichen growing up the walls. Giant mushrooms sprouted up in the cavern from another deep ravine below. Normally the mushrooms sprouted up to form two separate paths, one leading upwards and the other straight across, yet today, there was only one path leading upwards to the left.  
  
"Psst. Hey, Waluigi," Daisy waved him over. The missing mushrooms were definitely a sign that the star eater had tainted the place. But why would he want to eat one set of giant mushrooms? Sure fungus was good on salads and burgers, but these were super-sized mushrooms. "You're seeing this, right?"  
  
He approached, visually following where she'd pointed. Her question sounded almost like a trick question. He squinted at the ravine, looking and looking. "There's nothing there."  
  
"That's the _problem_ ," Daisy pointed out. "We've run this course at least a thousand times to know that something's missing." While Waluigi had missed the most recent kart race, he'd been there the previous time and times before to know that the mushrooms should have been there.  
  
Waluigi unhinged his jaw, slouching over in contemplation. He knew very well about the shadow creatures. He'd nearly been swallowed up when Fortune Street simply disappeared from existence. And he nearly fell victim to the attack earlier today when the shadow ravens ambushed Toad Town. Missing mushrooms, while seemingly stupid, definitely indicated something was wrong.  
  
Waluigi, wanting to be protective of Daisy, stepped forward to observe the missing fungus. Daisy naturally followed suit, wanting to do everything herself and rescue everyone. She knew she needed his help but she didn't want him doing everything for her. She wasn't a helpless victim.  
  
Ninjetta followed as well, one hand on the edge Daisy's skirt. While the two humans seemed brave, the ninji was absolutely a nervous wreck. She tugged on Daisy's skirt a few times frantically. Something wasn't right here.  
  
Daisy grabbed at the back of her dress, pulling it back up while continuing to stare at the missing mushrooms. "Stop it, Ninjetta."  
  
"Um, P-p-p-princess?" she stammered, tugging some more.  
  
"What is your problem?!" Daisy hissed, turning around to pull the skirt from the ninji's grip but suddenly paused. "Uh oh." Partially turned around, she could see the light from the entrance was quickly growing dimmer as some sort of black fog quickly overtook it. She prodded Waluigi in the shoulder.  
  
As the light from the entrance was completely shut off, something seemed to move at ground level. The mist shifted, accompanied by the sound of high heels. Waluigi reached for his bow that had been thrown over his shoulder like a messenger bag. Daisy followed suit, reaching for the sword at her waist.  
  
A stranger emerged from the mist, her features obscured by the darkness of the cavern. The luminous fungus didn't serve well for proper lighting. With a flick of her wrist, the fog dissipated, casting light into the cavern once again. The stranger stood tall. Her blond hair was pulled back into a high ponytail, her face obscured by a black and purple mask. Her outfit was primarily purple and deep red swirled with stars and dark matter resembling a nebula from one of Rosalina's picture books. The bodice was contoured, two solid straps holding it to her shoulders with a low back held shut with thick laces. The skirt was short with an overskirt crumpled up in the back to form numerous rolls and ruffles. The underside of the skirt looked like a dying night sky, the faded stars barely showing through. The sound of heels came from her knee-high heeled boots, the top cut in the center like a V. She held no weapon, yet that was hardly a sign she was a friendly newcomer.  
  
Waluigi stared at her for a moment. She looked nothing like the man he'd encountered at Fortune Street. He really knew nothing of that man, nor had he seen him again. The only thing he did know was that the man had taken Wario away.  
  
Daisy stared too, though for a different reason. There was something hauntingly familiar about her, but she couldn't put a finger on it. Given the stance the stranger took, she wasn't here for a chat or a race. "Just who are ya? Do you have something to do with these missing mushrooms?!" The mushrooms, if they'd been cut down or died, would always grow back. Yet Daisy was certain the missing fungus was the star eater's doing. "Are you the star eater?!"  
  
The stranger drew a gloved hand to her mouth and cackled quite loudly despite her rather dainty motion. "You know of the Star Lord's glorious work." She seemed rather pleased, as if Daisy had shouted some sort of compliment. "I am Apricot, the Lord's most promising of minions and certainly the most beautiful. I am here to terminate your quest."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mushroom Gorge is a race track that first appeared in Mario Kart Wii and returns for 7. Hopefully it’ll return for 8 too.
> 
> E. Gadd’s DS is reference to Luigi’s Mansion 2: Dark Moon. Originally it doesn’t have a name but early on in the game, the professor dubs it the Dual Scream.


	11. A battle of linguistics

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the arrival of the mysterious Apricot, Waluigi and Daisy find themselves in a battle of linguistics. Can their poor attempt to string sentences together overcome the well-spoken threat of Apricot?

"I am Apricot," the stranger boasted, standing confidently in the opening of the cavern on the Mushroom Gorge racetrack. "I am here to terminate you and your futile quest, Daisy."  
  
Daisy narrowed her eyes at Apricot. "Just who the hell do you think you are?!" This Apricot certainly was a boisterous one. Sure she seemed to have command over some sort of fog, but that didn't mean she could take both Daisy and Waluigi out. Ninjetta probably wouldn't fight unless necessary.  
  
Apricot shook her head at the question. "You do not listen well, do you?" She outstretched her right hand. The shadows cast in the cavern heeded her silent call, moving about and gathering at her hand. More and more the shadows gathered until they'd manifested into a black shadowy parasol. "You seem not to understand the gravity of your situation. You cannot win such an unbalanced battle, no matter what you may be."  
  
Daisy frowned, even more irritated that Apricot was attempting to win a battle of linguistics. Yet eloquent speech aside, the arrogant air Apricot held was quickly getting under Daisy's skin. She quickly drew her sword. "You want a fight? You got it, but  _you'll_  lose, not me!"  
  
Waluigi was quickly growing irritated as well, though mostly as the two bickering girls seemed to forget he was standing there. Perhaps that was an advantage, as he could end this battle quickly. Like the two girls, he had a big ego of his own, hating the idea of losing to anyone. Waluigi was number one, after all. While he still had his bow drawn, he reached into the bag with his free hand. He didn't pull out an arrow but instead a bomb.  
  
A quick flick of his fingers and he lit the fuse with a lighter in the bag. While the girls continued to argue, he flung the bomb overhand at Apricot with surprising accuracy. The bomb exploded on impact, immediately cutting off the bickering. "Waluigi win!"  
  
While Daisy could have easily hit him for stealing her thunder, she was more pleased to be rid of that meddling Apricot. "So much for  _invincible,_  right?" she laughed victoriously. "If the star eater's this weak, we'll have no problemo getting everyone back!"  
  
As soon as the two celebrated a victory, their hopes were quickly crushed. The smoke from the explosion dissipated, revealing a barely scathed Apricot shielding herself with the shadow parasol. "You shan't be victorious so easily," she chided them. "If such were your most useful and effective tactic, you will never achieve victory. Instead you will fall by my hand alone."  
  
Maybe Daisy really would shrivel up in a battle of linguistics after all. Neither on their side of the field was particularly well versed in vocabulary. Daisy was hardly a competitor in the field, as her manner of speech had the sound of pidgits and ravens attempting to sing, neither of which is known to be melodic by any standards. Waluigi barely formed proper sentences, and half of what he said was intelligible to everyone save Wario.  
  
"You'll not... You'll be the one who... uh... You'll find yourself eating dirt soon enough!" Daisy spat out. Despite her symbol  _being_  a daisy, she certainly couldn't flower up her speech to match the elegance of it. Instead the words came out as if she'd spilled alphabet soup on the floor.  
  
Waluigi barely understood what either of them said. Enough flowery speech was enough. "Waluigi time!"  
  
Daisy knew well enough to know what he meant, as it was his way of spouting victory at soccer matches. Apricot, on the other hand, seemed thoroughly confused as she took a hand to her chin to sort out the phrase.  
  
"She can't understand anything you're saying," Daisy thought aloud. "Quick, Waluigi, say something else!"  
  
Waluigi paused, staring now at Daisy. In return, she stared back, nodding sideways at Apricot, wiggling her eyebrows a few times. She sure was a strange one, but he got the idea rather quickly. While he was hardly a linguist, he could understand body language surprisingly well. "Waluigi number one! Yeah yeah yeah!"  
  
Daisy glanced over to see Apricot's face twist into an even more confused knot as she attempted to sort out the words poorly strung together. "Daisy chocolate milk!" she shouted. While Waluigi's sentences did make some sense, Daisy's didn't. She just spout out random words that sounded strange together. Sure, she did like chocolate milk, but it wasn't something she was particularly thinking about at the moment.  
  
She glanced back at Waluigi, offering a nod. Their strange strategy seemed to be working, giving them the advantage. As long as they could distract her, they could turn this battle to their favor. A few more moronic sentences and Apricot's brain would probably explode.  
  
"Waluigi kart!" he shouted randomly.  
  
Apricot frowned. "Enough of this blather! Your words are most certainly random with no true significance. I shall end your pointless conversations in one swift maneuver."  
  
Daisy frowned. So much for that strategy. Even if it did buy them some time, they didn't use that time to plan a new course of action. "Brute force it is," she shrugged. "COTTAGE CHEESE!" she shouted, lunging forward, her sword drawn over her right shoulder. She didn't expect it to have an effect anymore, but it sure was fun shouting random things in battle.  
  
"Your attempts are futile!" Apricot shouted back, opening her shadow parasol to block the attack. The force and strength behind Daisy's attack had pushed her back half a foot. Apricot dug her heels into the dirt to keep from sliding backwards. No way she'd let some backwater princess overtake her.  
  
Yet there was an unpredictable factor in the mix. Waluigi was an enigma. The words he spat out didn't form cohesive sentences, and he stood in humanly impossible ways. Apricot knew nothing of his skills or weaponry, save the bomb he'd thrown earlier. He wielded a bow, but even idiots could handle one. It took someone with precise skill to actually use one effectively and accurately. His posture wasn't right for such skills anyway.  
  
All Apricot's intell marked Daisy as a threat, listing out her known skills and abilities. She was marked as the secondary khenet, the color of eternal persistence. Her presence was marring the master's progress, and Apricot couldn't have that. Daisy needed to be eliminated.  
  
Yet Daisy was proving to be a more formidable force than previously understood. While the information gathered from the shadow ninji swarm had been quite informative, Daisy simply wasn't as weak as she seemed. She lived up to her khenet status.  
  
And while Apricot could fend for herself, there was still that extra factor, the unknown purple who stood by her side.  
  
An arrow sailed through the air, grazing Apricot's shoulder as she attempted to force back Daisy's assault with her shadow parasol. The arrow launched with extreme precision and speed, only missing its mark when Apricot had shifted at the last moment to counter Daisy's movements. The arrow had even sailed through her hair, not even getting tangled once. She glanced over to see Waluigi holding the bow with his left hand, his right hand drawn backwards, arm bent at the elbow, with his fingers bent slightly. The bow string still vibrated slightly. He'd shifted his stance, standing up straight with a slight arch in his back.  
  
For a moment, Apricot couldn't believe that hunched purple had shot the arrow, but he was the only one who could have done so. The ninji certainly hadn't.  
  
Daisy took advantage of the moment of surprise, delivering a swift kick to the chest followed by another. Apricot attempted to recover by swinging the shadow parasol, but Daisy avoided the counterattack and countered with her own kick. The force was enough to knock Apricot off balance and she teetered backwards towards the ravine. Losing her footing, she tipped over backwards. Daisy quickly grabbed for her, as she never intended to throw Apricot off the cliff, but she missed and Apricot fell to the darkness below.  
  
"Victory!" Waluigi cheered, pumping his fist into the air. He'd returned to slouching, rolling his shoulders forward and bending his neck oddly. "Waaaaaa."  
  
Daisy glanced at him, strangely silent. It was a victory, but there was something more on her mind, something she just couldn't figure out.  
  
...  
  
Following Apricot's defeat, the trail of shadows fell cold, causing Waluigi and Daisy to return back to Peach's Castle. While it was their first victory over the star eater, Apricot's demise still weighed heavily on Daisy's heart. She'd never killed anyone before, nor had she ever intended on doing so. And when she watched Apricot fall, Daisy felt as if she'd suddenly lost a friend.

 

Daisy sighed, staring out into the morning light as she leaned against the balcony railing. Her hair was still a mess, uncombed and unkept. She'd stolen Peach's pajamas but she'd barely slept that night, still thinking about Apricot. Why was that linguistic nightmare on her mind so much?

 

Pulling on her makeshift yellow dress, she sauntered downstairs. She still hadn't quite brushed her hair but that didn't particularly matter. She didn't need to put on a proper face for anyone right now.

 

"Ohoho, good you're up!" Professor E. Gadd clapped excitedly as she entered the dining room. He'd shifted from the usual board room to the dining room for a small breakfast of toast and eggs.

 

Waluigi had joined him, choosing to play his handheld once again, furiously mashing the buttons and attempting to beat a level. "Waluigi gonna win..." he mumbled to himself.

 

"Need breakfast," she interjected, heading towards the kitchen. Breakfast was a necessity, and whatever the professor was eating smelled incredibly enticing. She had to have some for herself. And given that the castle wasn't under attack, everything else could wait. She paused suddenly when she felt the ninji pull on the back of her dress. "What?"

 

"Princess, the professor has some troubling news," the ninji tugged on her dress some more. "I think you need to hear this." She was persistent, gripping on to Daisy's dress as tightly as possible. She didn't have the weight to stop Daisy by any means, but her expression of worry did.

 

"Okay, what?" Daisy tugged on her skirt to get Ninjetta to let go, then flopped down at the table across from the professor. Ninjetta hopped up and sat in the seat next to her.

 

"That's right, young feller! I've analyzed all the data you've collected at the Gorge," the professor started. "While I couldn't find any useful information on this Apricot youngun you encountered, her trail resurfaced."

 

Daisy stood up suddenly. "Wait, she's alive?!" This was good news for her, at least. She truly didn't want to push Apricot off the cliff, just push her down so she wasn't as much of a threat. She'd felt guilty about it since they'd returned yesterday from the Gorge, and it was eating away at her mind.

 

"I can't say quite yet," the professor countered, "but what I can tell you is it disappeared again in Dinosaur Island. That's when I got a strange call! Parts of the Island had disappeared and reappeared overnight, but they didn't come back the same."

 

Daisy paused, staring incredulously before flopping back into her chair in disbelief. "It can't be, could it? Is the Star Eater already reforming the world?"

 

"Oho, keen observation," the professor noted. "It is entirely possible. Perhaps a visit will give us more clues to--"

 

"Count me in," Daisy cut him off. "I want to stop this creeper before he reforms the world."

 

...

 

The travel to Dinosaur Island would have been quick if the pipe system was still operational. The sudden loss of Donut Plains had caused the local pipes to simply disappear. The nearby pipes had been interrupted as well, forcing Daisy and Waluigi to reroute to the nearby Forest of Illusion and find a path across Soda Lake.

 

Neither knew the landscape, and the name 'Forest of Illusion' didn't particularly set well with Daisy. Ninjetta had found a paper map folded up in Peach's library. Peach had acquired a large selection of maps, no doubt left there by Mario and Luigi on their grand adventures around the world. Fortunately, many of them were highly detailed, including the map of Dinosaur Island.

 

Ninjetta unfolded the map, tapping it a few times to push out the creases. After managing to unfold all of the corners, the ninji set the map on the ground.

 

Busy munching on an egg and cheese wrap, Daisy peered over her shoulder at the map. "So we're here, right?" Daisy pointed with her free hand at a small lake situated in the middle of the forest. It was a pretty distinct location, marked as the only lake within the forest boundaries. Several paths lead around the lake, exiting the area on all four sides. There were pipes marked on the map as well, though hardly a useful marking as the network was currently rendered useless.

 

"Mhm," the ninji nodded, then pointed at a section across the water. "This is Donut Plains." The place fit the name, shaped like a donut, wrapping around a small somewhat round lake. The donut looked as if it had been squished a bit before being dropped on the map. Happy looking mountains traced the western edge while craggy mountains sat to the south. To the north was a large dome mountain, labeled as Vanilla Dome.

 

"The shortest path is across here," Ninjetta pointed out, tapping a waterfall situated directly between the western border of the Forest and the eastern shore of the Plains.

 

"Can you even swim?" Daisy frowned at the suggestion. No bridges were marked in the area, nor were any docks or signs of boats. "What about this bridge up here?" she tapped the map, pointing out a bridge further up the mountains.

"Why don't we use that strange thing the professor gave us?" Ninjetta offered, pulling out a strange creation that looked like a soda can from her bag.

 

"Do you really trust something called a BubbleBoat9000?" Daisy pointed out. "That comes in a _can_?"

 

"The professor's inventions have always proven to be useful," Ninjetta countered. "Sure his inventions are strange, but they do work. Unless _you_ would prefer to swim," she added snidely. The ninji, for one, would prefer to stay dry. Her kind wasn't known for swimming; they were known for jumping. Ninjetta didn't actually know how to swim and wasn't even sure she was capable of swimming. She'd probably sink, right along side her liege and that heavy set of armor.

 

"As if!" Daisy scoffed. "I just ate!" It wasn't the best excuse, but it was one valid within her mind. She also had no intention of swimming. The armor while protective was certainly not made for swimming, even across such a short distance. She wanted to actually make it to Donut Plains, not sink in the lake.

 

"Alright, it's settled then!" Daisy stood up, brushing the crumbs from breakfast off her dress. "We'll take this Bubble Boat whatever thing across the lake and be there in no time flat!"

 

Pleased by her sudden enthusiasm, Ninjetta folded the map back up and shoved it back into the bag along with the can containing the bubble boat. This was much easier than dragging Daisy unwillingly across a lake.

 

"Hey, Waluigi, what're you doing?" Daisy called out to him. "Let's go!"

 

Waluigi hadn't looked at the map at all. Instead he'd taken to staring southward down the path, frozen in a hunched over position. He hadn't really listened to their conversation, seemingly focused on something further into the forest. "Something's here."

 

Daisy's attention immediately snapped to where he was staring. "Is it Apricot again? Or more shadow things?"

 

The sound of footsteps bounced off the trees. They were loud and heavy. Daisy shifted to a more defensive stance, hand on the hilt of her sword. They had to be prepared for anything at this point. They'd been assaulted by various shadow creatures and a girl calling herself Apricot. Nothing was unexpected anymore.

 

The noise grew louder and louder. The trees felt as if they were bending over, covering all possible exits. Waluigi backed up, nearly bumping into Daisy as the trees felt like they were surrounding them, drawing closer and closer until there was no more room to even breathe.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dinosaur Land (referred to by many names actually) is where Super Mario World takes place. It's one of the places where Yoshi and various other creatures are native. Ninjetta's map is really just a detailed overworld map, since in SMW you can see pretty much the entire land, unlike other games, save the Vanilla Dome and Forest of Illusion, as for those you zoom in to the area for the map.


	12. Whispers in the forest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The intrepid trio find themselves in an odd forest with a bunch of wigglers with strange words. Can the wigglers offer then some new information to help them with their quest?

_"Princess? Princess!"_

 

Daisy felt something nudge against her, like two little feet pushing against her back.

 

_"Princess! Get off me!"_

 

Daisy's eyes shot open. The afternoon sunlight glared against the tree tops wavering slightly in the breeze. Several faceless clouds floated above, peacefully and happily. Those trees, were they just an illusion? She felt the ninji push against her once again, jarring her from her thoughts. "Oh sorry, Ninjetta." She sat up, releasing the ninji from her imprisonment under Daisy's weight.

 

Turning, she picked up the ninji, setting her down on her feet. "What just happened? How long were we out?"

 

"It's called the 'Forest of Going Astray' for a reason."

 

Although she was still sitting, Daisy nearly leapt backwards and back onto Ninjetta who was still recovering from the last assault. "Wh-wh-" she stammered, looking around quickly and nervously. She didn't recognize the voice, but after encountering Apricot, there was a good chance other minions of the Star Eater existed. And after a possible attack, it was probable they'd stay around.

 

Instead she spotted a somewhat small wiggler, young in appearance. He looked like a normal wiggler, yellow in color with a white flower sprouting from his head. He didn't show any signs of shadows or strange coloring.

 

"So. You've experienced an illusion," he clarified. "It happens a lot here, kay?"

 

Ninjetta brushed herself off and rounded Daisy to properly introduce everyone. "We're sorry we kind of invaded your forest, Mr. Wiggler---"

 

"Call me Wiggly, kay?" he interjected.

 

"Ah, Mr. Wiggly then," Ninjetta corrected herself. "We've been forced to take an alternate route to Donut Plains and got kind of lost."

 

"So. Now why would you wanna go there?" Wiggly asked, looking somewhat sideways at the trio. They were a strange bunch. A guy who couldn't stand up straight, a girl in armor, and a ninji. They didn't seem like they'd get along on a normal basis, yet there they were. Perhaps they were a strange assemblage of a family. "So. Weird stuff's been happenin' over there, even weirder than what happens here in the forest, kay?"

 

"That's actually why we're here," Ninjetta replied. "We're investigating that weird stuff. We---"

 

"Are you associated with that Star Eater in any way?" Daisy suddenly interjected.

 

"Huh?" Wiggly blinked, surprised to hear those words. "So. You mean the star lord?"

 

"So you are associated with him!" Daisy leapt to her feet, leaning forward slightly in an attempt to appear more intimidating. She placed her hands firmly on her hips, frowning.

 

The wiggler frowned in return, drawing closer to get in her face. "Why would I do that?"

 

"Don't lie to me," Daisy demanded.

 

"Don't make me angry, kay" the wiggler countered.

 

"ENOUGH!" Ninjetta shouted, wiggling her way between the two in an attempt to push them apart before they started fighting. "We're here to fight the star eater, not each other, so stop it! Both of you!"

 

Daisy stepped back, folding her arms. Wiggly stepped back as well, rearing up a bit to fold his front feet together. "So. You're making such quick assumptions, kay?" he frowned.

 

"Then tell me," Daisy retorted, "why are you calling that _thing_ the star _lord_? Hm?"

 

"So," Wiggly replied. "The elders said the trees started whispering the name, kay? The trees said it was dangerous, kay?"

 

"Star eater a big cheater! Cheated Waluigi out of Wario and home," Waluigi added, still standing awkwardly off to the side. It was the first thing he'd spoken since everyone awoke from the illusion. While it was mildly entertaining to watch Daisy verbally attempt to manhandle the wiggler, Waluigi needed to establish how much he also hated the star eater. In turn, at least according to his own logic, that would free Daisy of any suspicion of being associated with it.

 

"He swallowed my home too," Daisy added bitterly.

 

"Is there any chance we can speak with the elders?" Ninjetta asked, relieved that the tension was somewhat out of the air. If these elders could hear the trees speak of the star eater, maybe they heard what happened over on the Donut Plains.

 

"So," Wiggly replied. "I don't see that as being much of a problem. Follow me."

 

...

 

On the eastern edge of the forest, a small settlement stood out against the forest and the shoreline. Gardens decorated the sides of the road, filled with various kinds of vegetables. Houses were fashioned out of fallen trees, covered in dirt with grass and flowers growing on them. Dirt roads lead up to the houses, beaten down by hundreds of feet crossing them. At the end, near the shoreline gathered a group of wigglers, their flowers on their heads slightly drooping with age. The council of elders had gathered to speak once again.

 

"Hm?" the eldest looked up from the circle to see Wiggly approach with three strangers. "Wwwwhat's this?"

 

"So," Wiggly replied. "These three are looking for information about the star lord, kay?"

 

"Hm?" the eldest replied with a question. "You're not Princess Peach, are you?"

 

Daisy stared at the old man flatly. She'd have to forgive him as he was old, but she still looked nothing like Peach. She didn't even like wearing pink. "I'm Daisy from Sarasaland."

 

"Didn't Sarasaland disappear?" another elder pointed out.

"It did," Daisy replied bitterly. "Ninjetta and I are the only survivors. We're out to stop the star lord or star eater or whateverthehell it's calling itself and get everyone and everything back. So if you can help us out, that'd be swell."

 

"Waluigi want to fight it too," Waluigi added.

 

The eldest looked the odd trio over. They turned, conferring to one another about possible paths of action and what might result in each path. The star lord was definitely a threat and many of the wiggler citizens in their tiny town were concerned that the star lord would attack the Forest too.

 

"Hm." The eldest turned back to Daisy and her party. "Wwwwwe'll tell you what wwwwwe know. Wwwwwe don't wwwwant this town to fall to the star lord's touch. Wwwwendy," he turned to one of the younger wigglers off to the side. She appeared to be an assistant of sorts with a bow tied around her flower. "Bring our guests some fresh food!"

 

As she scampered away, the trio of guests sat down on the sand with the elder wigglers. Ninjetta climbed into Daisy lap. She felt safe there. And while she didn't feel threatened by the wigglers at all, the illusion they'd experienced was still eating away at her mind. Daisy leaned forward, wrapping her arms around the ninji. Waluigi sat next to them in some awkward form of crossing his legs and leaning forward in ways a spine shouldn't bend.

 

"Hm," the eldest wiggler continued. "Last night, the trees began wwwwhispering a name. Star Lord Seth, they said."

 

"It has a name?" Daisy blinked. Since this all began, Daisy had only thought of the star eater as an ominous cloud, but could it have been more?

 

Waluigi paused as well. He still could recall that man he saw emerge from the hole where Fortune Street once stood. The man seemed marginally human, save the galaxy he had living in his coat. He still wasn't entirely sure who the man was, but he marked him an enemy after he'd kidnapped Wario. He still had yet to mention the man, though it was becoming increasingly more possible that the man was the star eater itself.

 

"Mm." The wiggler looked up at the trees near by that marked the edge of the forest and the start of the beach. "The trees began sighing that name. 'Star eater', they said. 'Destroyer of wwwwworlds.'"

 

"They began chanting words over and over again," another elder chimed in. She looked up at the trees too. " _Reeeed. Turquoise. Greeeen. Gooooold._ Over and over until it became almost deafening, see?"

 

"Wait, wait, wait," Daisy interrupted. "Those colors! They're the same ones that Dr. Toadley saw in his vision. They're the same colors of the people abducted from our worlds. But I thought that it was still missing gold." She'd considered Wario took gold's place, yet after she'd been attacked so much herself, she wasn't so sure anymore.

 

The elder shook her head. "I do not know, but they chanted it. Then everything fell silent. Not a word. We looked out and the Donut Plains across the water were gone, see?"

 

"That's just like what happened at home," Daisy frowned. She still could remember the gaping hole that once was Birabuto, then watching Chai suddenly disappear right before her own eyes. "That's definitely a sure-tell sign of the star eater's work. Was there any mention of shadows or some chick named Apricot?"

 

"Hm," The eldest wiggler replied. "In the morning, the trees began wwwwwhispering that. 'Apricot'. I thought they were talking about fruit."

 

"She was here. She's still alive," Daisy mused aloud. She didn't know how, but that resilient irritating woman had survived the fall into the Gorge. "Then I think we need to go look at something. We got word this morning that the Plains have been replaced."

 

The elders glanced at one another. A nod almost in unison, and they all agreed. They too had to see this change for themselves.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The odd forms of speech are making fun of how no one really speaks normally in the any of the rpgs.


	13. The Donut Jungle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trio of heroes and their wiggler companions encounter the first land remade by the star eater. Something unnatural had replaced the Donut Plains. What could be lurking within?

The notion that something had _replaced_ the missing Donut Plains was enough to get the wigglers unnerved and upset. The council of elders moved rather quickly for being as old as they were. Wiggly offered Daisy, Waluigi, and Ninjetta a ride across the forest so they wouldn't be trampled by everyone else.

 

Their trek was swift and seamless, as the wigglers knew the forest like the bottoms of their many shoes. They weren't affected by the illusions or the circular paths and false trees in the forest. They simply carried along on their way to the small jut of land where the Forest came the closest to the Plains. For wigglers, the gap was relatively small, but for Daisy, the distance was a bit more than a hop and a skip away.

 

The elders stopped quickly, almost suddenly, as they caught sight of the Plains. Daisy and Waluigi dismounted and approached the shoreline to get a better look. Ninjetta hopped along behind, practically clinging to Daisy's skirt once again. None of them could actually believe what they were seeing.

 

The Donut Plains had been completely reformed, resembling nothing of the surrounding area. It didn't even resemble the picture on the map Ninjetta had found. The land had seemingly sprouted up overnight. The flora was strikingly green. The plants closest to the shore were low to the ground with large wide leaves. Fern fronds sprouted up from within the bushes, curling at the ends into tight knots as they adjusted to the new surroundings.

 

Behind the bushes sprouted some trees unlike they'd ever seen before. They were tall and skinny with a poof of leaves at the top. No one was entirely certain they _were_ leaves, as they appeared incredibly fuzzy. Further in the distance, the landscape popped up into rolling hills, dotted with more fuzzy trees and leafy plants.

 

The sky above the island had changed into a perpetual night sky dotted with dim stars clustered together in a long streak. It almost appeared like someone had torn a piece of the sky away and simply replaced with a patch of stars. Wispy clouds hung low around the mountains in the distance. More clouds obscured where Vanilla Dome probably sat. The bottom of the Dome was covered with a strange ivy which curled and twisted about before disappearing in the clouds.

 

While there were copious amounts of plants, there weren't signs of any animal life.

 

"Waaaaaaa," Waluigi marveled, staring at the place with his jaw practically unhinged, leaving his mouth to hang open as wide as possible.

 

"Yeah you said it," Daisy stared as well, gaping at the scenery. The scenery was actually quite beautiful and peaceful. It was hard to think the place sprung up over night, created by something bent on destroying everything they held dear. "It's become the Donut _Jungle_."

 

"Hm," the eldest elder agreed. "Wwwwell put."

 

Daisy nudged Ninjetta, and the ninji immediately responded by fishing out and handing her the golden DS. Daisy opened it up and the thing began taking in and spitting out copious amounts of calculations, nothing truly of relevance to the princess but definitely something the professor would be overjoyed to see.

 

"There's something in there," Daisy stated suddenly, staring at the DS screen. "I think it's _her._ "

 

Ninjetta swallowed hard. "Apricot?"

 

"Possibly," Daisy nodded. "The DS says it's similar to her signature. It's moving around, probably watching the reformation. We should go see what it is."

 

"A-are you crazy, princess?!" the ninji quickly objected. She had been a bit ambitious about their excursion from the start, but after that hallucination earlier, the ninji had been utterly shook up. And now the possibility of meeting with Apricot again wasn't sitting well either.

 

"If it _is_ Apricot, maybe we can get her to talk," Daisy countered. "Now where's that bubble boat in a can thing?"

 

"You can't go in there as you are, see?" the elder interrupted.

 

"Look, I appreciate the concern," Daisy countered, "but if she really is in there, we need to see what she's doing. We have to stop this world remaking thing. I can't have everything turn into that. I mean, it's pretty and all but---"

 

"I mean," the elder interrupted Daisy's babbling, "you can't go in unprepared, see?"

 

Daisy blinked. "Oh. But I have a sword."

 

Wendy, one of the younger wigglers she'd seen earlier approached, a small bundle in hand. She offered the bundle to Daisy for her inspection.

 

"Hm?" Daisy observed the bundle, taking it from the wiggler's hands. She peered inside the tied bundle, frowning a bit. "Turnips?"

 

"Hm," the eldest wiggler replied. "You never wwwwwhen one might come in handy. Wwwwwe'll wwwwwait for you here to return."

 

"I threw in a few things extra too," Wendy added. "Just don't drop the package, kay?"

 

Daisy stared at the package for a moment, considering that Wendy had stashed some bombs inside. She couldn't see anything but turnips, but whatever was hiding beneath was solid and strangely shaped. There was something squishy there too. "Thanks." She slung the package over her shoulder, using the knot like a strap on a purse. "Here goes nothing."

 

Removing the can from her bag, Ninjetta shook the boat can then unscrewed the lid. The boat flew out from within the can, expanding into an emergency raft which appeared to be made out of bubbles. The boat landed softly on the edge of the waterfall, seemingly not moved by the lake's current.

 

"How does this even work?" Daisy stared at it.

 

Ninjetta shrugged, then simply climbed on the boat. The surface was bouncy and rubbery, perfectly solid for a smooth ride. Daisy shrugged and followed suit, being mindful to not stab the boat with the edge of the sword sheath. Waluigi followed too, awkwardly settling in at the rear of the boat. Despite not having any form of propulsion, the boat scooted along the waterfall, landing safely at the other shore.

 

After disembarking, Daisy turned to wave at the wigglers before they disappeared into the brush. The jungle was as dark as it appeared, the only light coming from the surrounding areas causing the large odd trees to cast rather eerie shadows. Visibility was rather poor.

 

The jungle was also remarkably quiet, no animals to make noise, no sounds of crickets or frogs in the night. Daisy paused, placing a hand in front of her companions, when she heard the sound of rustling leaves ahead. She quickly ducked into the brush as a light approached, pulling Waluigi into hiding with her.

 

The light didn't come alone. A familiar set of high heeled boots passed the bushes where they hid, accompanied by a long purple train decorated like a dark nebula in the sky. The bracelet around the ankle of her boot clinked in the silence as she walked past.

 

"I know naught of why I must remain in such a place," she complained aloud to herself. "No signs of threats, no signs of interference. Perhaps the second khenet hath simply declared defeat." She laughed delicately to herself.

 

Daisy stared as she heard Apricot's strange words. A second khenet? That was gold, wasn't it? If there was a _second,_ then a first one was already at work to create this reformation, no doubt forced against his will.

 

" _At such a rate, the sources will be exhausted 'fore the world is yet complete_ ," she frowned. Her voice had shifted to something akin mockery, though the hidden audience couldn't determine exactly what. "Killing the second khenet is the only logical step before such a scenario could occur. In due time, Apricot. In due time, I shall return with her head upon a pike."

 

Daisy felt her heart stop for a moment. Apricot wasn't an ordinary villain. She actually wanted to kill and _behead_ Daisy, taking her head home as a _trophy._ And she had no doubt anymore that Apricot actually would _do_ it. For the first time in her life, she actually wished she had killed Apricot in that battle at the Gorge. Her personality seemed much more vicious than their last meeting, her speech becoming more obsessive and less formal. She'd become completely possessed by the need to kill Daisy at all costs.

 

Had the star eater remade her after her demise?

 

Her breathing became short, her mind racing. They needed to leave. Screw the readings. Screw questioning Apricot. They had to leave now, to find that bubble boat and paddle back to the Forest of Illusions.

 

"Who goes there?!" Apricot demanded suddenly, shifting about, searching for signs of life. "Hast thou finally returned to me, Daisy?" A smirk crossed her lips. She could hear her breathing.

 

Daisy froze, but Waluigi made the first move. From his bag he removed a bob-omb. Quickly, he wound it up, setting it on the ground and facing it towards Apricot. The bomb marched out from within the bushes, one step after another as the fuse quickly burned. As Apricot noticed the whirring noise of the bob-omb approaching, an explosion lit up the night sky.

 

The wigglers watched from the distance, hoping this would not be the end for their ambitious friends.

 

 


	14. For the sake of her life

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Within the wilds of the Donut Jungle, the trio of misfit heroes battle for their lives against the vicious adversary with immeasurable amounts of shadows at her disposal. Can Wendy's bag of treats help them out?

A blast lit up the night sky, visible even across the Soda Lake. The wigglers watched from the jut of land just outside the Forest of Illusion. Further south, some of the yoshi had emerged from their hiding to see the flare of light illuminate the dark sky. The cheep cheeps in the lagoon dove further down into the water. Everyone watched in worry, as no one wanted to see the Plains disappear again.

 

The explosion had given Daisy a moment to catch her breath and smack herself for being so afraid. This was war, a battle of life or death. She knew that from the start, and she agreed to the terms. If she had to give her own life to stop this star eater's work then so be it.

 

Emerging from the bushes, Daisy arose to find Apricot had survived the explosion and was busy attempting to put her dress out. It had caught fire, singeing the ends of tulle and fabric. She hadn't yet noticed Daisy, giving the golden princess a slight advantage.

 

Daisy dug into the satchel the wigglers had given her, pulling out a turnip that looked a bit too large to have fit into the bag. The turnip looked like it had a devious face, smirking at the battle to come. _Fitting_ , Daisy mused, pulling her hand over her shoulder and chucking the veggie at her opponent as hard as she could. Her aim was true, and it impacted Apricot square in the middle of her forehead, causing her to rear back in surprise.

 

"Ahaha!" she laughed shrilly. "Thine arrival is perfectly timed, Daisy."

 

Daisy stared for a moment. Her personality _had_ changed. It wasn't just her imagination. That simply meant Daisy would have to become more aggressive herself in order to survive. Daisy hated losing and this time, losing was a seriously big deal. This time, it would actually cost her life. Fortunately she had Waluigi and a bag of tricks to back her up.

 

Apricot spent little time trying to recover, taking the torch she'd dropped back into her hand. With darkness surrounding them, Apricot had a veritable gold mine of powers to tap. She drew the shadows to her at her silent command. They wrapped around the torch, forming a sword lit with a black flame. She meant business.

 

Daisy quickly drew her sword, tightening her grip on the hilt to prevent her from becoming afraid once again. She couldn't lose her nerve. It would spell her death. "I'll distract her. Take your first opportunity," she informed her companions quietly before stepping forward out of the bushes and onto the pathway. She was putting her life on the line for a chance of defeating Apricot and stopping this madness.

 

Her heart pounded in her chest. Daisy wasn't versed in battle. She did whatever came to mind, mixing combat with athletics. She withdrew her blade, taking it in both hands and pulling it up like a baseball bat. "C'mere Apricot. I'm gonna break your stupid face."

 

Apricot smirked, twisting her features to inhuman proportions. " 'twill be yours which doth breakest!" For her, the outcome seemed incredibly obvious. In both encounters with the second khenet, Daisy seemed incredibly unskillful, though she had power and unyielding determination on her side. Her skills with the sword she kept with her, however, were quite the opposite. Holding a sword like a baseball bat only did so much good. Apricot would simply force Daisy's hand.

 

Gathering more shadows to her sword, Apricot silently commanded the sword larger, turning from a simple broadsword to a massive zweihänder. Daisy held her grip on her sword, though her nerves were kicking in.

 

Still holding the zweihänder with one hand, she pulled her arm across her body, her hand meeting the opposite shoulder. In one massive motion, she swept the blade from shoulder to opposite foot. Despite the size, the blade didn't even reach Daisy but the impact of her swing did. As the blade traveled, the gathered shadows swung off, creating a sort of nightly wind.

 

The pressure forced Daisy to curl up to guard herself, but in doing so, she managed to lose grip of her only weapon. Behind her, Waluigi had grabbed Ninjetta in favor of losing his own artillery. His bag flipped backwards several times, spewing the contents of the bag about the forest, before falling into the Soda Lake behind them.

 

Daisy turned, noticing her sword had impaled itself into a tree a few trees back. She debated on turning to retrieve it, but stood her ground as Apricot released another attack. She had to do something and fast, else Apricot would clearly overpower all of them. Her heart was racing far too much to properly think. Images of her own head on a pike and Apricot roasting her entrails filled her creative mind. She nearly threw up right on the spot.

 

As she turned slightly, ducking her head behind her armored arms, she noticed the strange bag Wendy the wiggler had gifted her earlier. Using her left arm as a shield against Apricot's next attack, she turned sideways, digging her right hand into the bag. There had to be something in there that was useful. She dug deep, feeling for the strangely shaped object in the bottom. Pulling something out, she found herself highly disappointed. "An acorn? Seriously?"

 

Apricot took a moment to laugh boastfully. "Hast thine arsenal become filled with useless junk?"

 

She wasn't wrong, really. Was there nothing in here that could help her? Frustrated, Daisy threw the oversized acorn at Apricot, hoping for at least a distraction. Wordlessly, a barrier of shadows formed like a shield in front of the blond to protect her from the projectile.

 

Daisy bit her lip. There had to be something good in this bag. She dug some more, pulling out other oddities. A piece of twine, a few twigs, then finally something massive. She held a large brick in her hand. It was heavy and larger than Daisy's head. She still wasn't sure how Wendy had fit such large items into a small satchel barely larger than a handkerchief, but she wasn't about to question this right now.

 

While Apricot busied herself laughing at Daisy's troubles, Daisy took the brick in both hands, winding up, pulling the block over her right shoulder. In an awkward sort of motion, she threw the brick like a throwing in a shot put event in the group's annual sport competitions. She wasn't entirely very strong and the brick wouldn't have gone as far as it did if Waluigi hadn't stood up and offered his own strength to push the brick on its course.

 

The brick sailed through the air. Apricot busied herself laughing at Daisy, but snapped back to reality as if the shadows had whispered a warning. Raising her sword, she sliced through the brick, sending pieces of it flying in all directions.

 

Daisy curled her hands in front of her as armored guards to shield both herself and Waluigi standing behind her. One of the pieces impacted her forearms hard, pushing her backwards and causing her to lose her balance. She fell backwards into Waluigi, the impact pushing them both to the ground and forcing Ninjetta to scamper out of the way.

 

Daisy sat up, bringing a hand to her forehead. "Sunnova---" she cut herself off, seeing Apricot had approached, brandishing her blade, pointing it directly at Daisy.

"Thine head shall serve as my greatest trophy," Apricot smirked, "a symbol of my greatest victory. The master shall be most pleased the hindrance hath fallen." Apricot raised her sword to the side, prepared to take her victory, but paused when an apple impacted her head.

 

"Ninjetta!" Daisy stared at her ninji friend, who stood poised on a large root with several apples in her arms. "Ninjetta, get outta here! Run!"

 

The ninji shook her head. "I can't do that, princess. I can't let her kill you. What sorta retainer would I be if I did?"

 

Daisy frowned, scowling at the ninji. At times, Ninjetta was as stubborn as her liege, perhaps why the two got along so well, then other times would argue until the next morning. "Ninjetta, you need to run and give the professor that DS thinger! You---"

 

Apricot quickly cut off the conversation. Using the perpetual night as a power source, she wrapped her boots in shadows then kicked the shadows off in Ninjetta's direction, knocking the ninji from her perch.

 

"NINJETTA!" Daisy stared, wide-eyed, praying that the ninji survive the attack. She pushed herself up a bit only to meet with the edge of Apricot's blade at her neck once again.

 

"Certainly thou dost believe not that I have forgotten of thee?" Apricot taunted.

 

"Why are you doing this?" Daisy demanded. "Why would you go and destroy everything? Don't you care about this world?"

 

"I care little of this world's inevitable fate," Apricot quickly replied.

 

"Isn't this your home?" Daisy quickly asked. The more she could keep Apricot talking, the more of a chance she had of surviving and finding a means out of this situation. Perhaps she could talk Apricot down. Sure, she didn't have the eloquence or diplomacy Peach did, but at least she could try. "Aren't you human too? Like me?"

 

"My origins matter not," Apricot frowned, staring down her blade at the golden princess. "Why such questions?"

 

_Bingo_. She caught Apricot's attention. "This world," Daisy admitted. "It's mine. Yeah, it's not perfect and things suck about it, like that douche Bowser and all his cronies, but it's still my world. And now, it's starting to go away. I don't want it to disappear. I've lost my home, but I don't want anyone else to lose theirs. Like yours. Or is it gone too?"

 

For once, Daisy was finally admitting the truth. Since the loss of Mario and Luigi at the party, she hadn't really thought about how _she herself_ felt. She'd concerned herself mostly with getting them back, her emotions slipping out at times in bouts of anger, then bottling them back up inside her heart. True, she was incredibly angry about the situation, but underneath she mourned the losses of her own people and those she called family. She mourned the loss of the place she'd called home, the place she'd built a life, the place others called home. It was all gone and she wanted to fix it.

 

"Must I repeat myself?" Apricot stated coldly, hardly affected by Daisy's heartfelt statement. "I care little of the inevitable fate of this world." She stepped forward, pushing her blade into the front of Daisy's neck.

 

With Waluigi unconscious underneath her, Daisy's movements were highly restricted. Ninjetta was nowhere to be seen, leaving the golden princess to her own accord. She placed her hand on the ground, wishing for a miracle. _Luigi, I'm coming to join you._

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A Zweihänder is primarily a sword of Germany during the Renaissance, most noted for its massive size. Blades could be upwards of 6' in length. For example, think of swords like Cloud Strife's and Siegfried's from Soulcalibur. In other words, Apricot means business.


	15. She was always the brave one

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Apricot literally at her throat, what will it take for Daisy and her friends to survive?

_"Luigi, I'm coming to join you."_

 

_He laughed at the notion. Wasn't she supposed to be the brave one? Wasn't she practically impervious to everything? He was the coward, so scared that he couldn't even ask her to marry him. She had to propose for the both of them._

 

_"What's so funny?" she demanded._

 

_"You can handle anything," he replied. "I'm the one scared of half of everything."_

 

_"Oh yeah?" she shot back jokingly. He was right, after all, though at this moment, she wasn't so certain of the idea. She wasn't even certain she was alive anymore, with Apricot bearing down into her neck. For all she knew, she was now a head mounted on a wall or a brain in a jar, her armor left in the jungle as a monument to her failure._

 

_"Don't think such thoughts," he chided playfully. "They're pretty scary."_

 

_She paused, staring into the white expanse before her. "Wait, you can hear what I'm thinking? You psychic now?"_

 

_"I'm not Nastasia," he replied. "This is just all in your mind."_

 

_"Really?" she blinked stupidly. "But you're--- and she's---- Am I----? What the hell."_

 

_"You called out to_ me _, khenet," he pointed out. "I'm just here to be your matching W3d."_

 

_"You're what now?" she blinked stupidly, still not sure if she was hallucinating, alive, dead, or somewhere in between._

 

_"Green," he replied. "The color of renewal, apparently."_

 

_"Wait, wait, wait," she interrupted. "Am I really talking to you?"_

 

_"You are," he replied. "Somehow. It might be Rosalina's power. Hopefully not ghosts."_

 

_She giggled. "No, I really hope it's not ghosts, though I_ am _on what_ was _Donut Plains so it is possible."_

 

_"There's a ghost house there," he said quickly._

 

_"There_ was _," she corrected him. "It's all gone, no thanks to that world engine or whatever." she paused then it hit her. "If you're here, does that mean you're dead?"_

 

_"You have a battle to do," he replied, not truly answering her question. "Green and gold, the power of renewal and eternity, or so Rosalina had said. That's all you need. I'll always be with you. Not that you really need that. You're the brave heroic one."_

 

_"Luigi, don't go."_

 

The sound of glass flooded her ears. It expanded and crackled, nearly overpowering the sound of a horrific scream. Daisy hadn't yet opened her eyes, but she still could feel the rest of her body, the cold armor on her arms and legs, Waluigi somehow still breathing under her weight as she sat on him. Her left hand felt warm, as if someone were holding onto it. She could no longer feel the blade pressed against her neck nor did she feel any pain.

 

"P-PRINCESS!!!"

 

Instinctively, Daisy quickly brought both hands up, grabbing for her neck. Everything was still there and attached. She didn't have a sword impaling her at the moment, so everything _seemed_ okay. She opened her eyes slowly, allowing her eyes to adjust to the darkness. "The hell happened?!"

 

She was surrounded by dozens of crystals spawning up from the ground, protecting her like a barricade. They were mostly translucent with a faint green hue to them. They bowed forward like a massive multi-part arrow. Apricot was nowhere to be seen, but that scream before, it certainly was her voice.

 

Daisy stood up, her hand on the crystals to steady herself. Her knees were shaking as the adrenaline left her body. Her breaths were short and her heart was finally slowing down. Peering around the wall, she could see Apricot's body in the distance, her legs poking out of the brush on the far end of the walkway. She lay there, lifeless. Her makeshift sword had returned to its original form of a torch, falling to the ground. The fire had gone out, leaving much of the area dark.

 

"Good, you're okay," the ninji jumped over to greet her liege. "With all that noise, I thought she'd stabbed you."

 

"You didn't see what happened?" Daisy stared at the ninji.

 

Ninjetta shook her head. "It was just really loud."

 

Daisy's hand felt warm as she touched the crystals. She pulled off the glove of her left hand, noticing the wedding ring she'd picked out glowed slightly. "Luigi." That conversation she'd had wasn't just some fabrication of her terrified mind. Or maybe it was, but she preferred to believe the former.

 

His words still stuck to the back of her mind. _That's all you need. I'll always be with you._ She'd 1-up him and then punch him if that were his way of saying he died. Yet something within her heart told her he wasn't dead. He was still alive somewhere. "He's alive. I know it. They all are." However, she couldn't say so much about Apricot. "I... I don't think she made it." Why did it feel like there was a hole left in her heart?

 

Ninjetta glared at the lifeless form in the bushes. "Well let's hope not, for all our sakes."

 

Daisy continued to stare at Apricot's unmoving form. In a way, she pitied the woman. She cared little about her home, and Daisy was beginning to think it wasn't her true thought. Perhaps that star eater had planted the idea in her or stripped away her true desires. There was just something in that one moment where Daisy had grabbed her attention, something within Apricot's eyes that seemed to say she was no longer in control. She took a step forward. "We should at least see who she is and maybe even bury her."

 

"Waaaaa~~~~"

 

The groan caught the princess's attention. She'd almost forgotten about Waluigi. She rounded the crystal again, offering a hand to help her odd ally to his feet. "Looks like we managed to survive. Somehow."

 

Taking to his feet, Waluigi stared at the crystals sideways, receiving a silent reply in the form of a shrug from both Ninjetta and Daisy. He didn't particularly bother thinking too far into it. The more important piece of information presently was Daisy still had her head in her possession. While he wouldn't vocalize such a thought, Waluigi never wanted to see Daisy hurt. The manner she threw herself into battle made his small heart pang just a little. He was never one to actually help anyone, standing in the back of a fight or being the villain. Yet this war was different. He was suddenly set in the role of the good guy.

 

Daisy glanced at Apricot then back to her allies. "Let's just get outta here." Approaching the Soda Lake falls, she pushed her foot into the tree and attempted to pull out the sword where it had lodged itself. With a bit of work, she pulled it out then resheathed it. She didn't particularly want to leave it here. It wasn't actually hers anyway. She'd have to return it at some point.

 

"Um. Ninjetta," Daisy stared. "Where's the boat?"

 

The ninji hopped up and down frantically. "Where is it!? Did it just float away?!"

 

"Damn thing probably popped." Daisy frowned. She didn't want to walk all the way around the long way. She'd rather swim across, though with the weight of her armor, it would be more sinking than swimming. Rummaging through her bag, she found something at the bottom. Something squishy. It floated out of her grip, hanging in the air as it slowly floated back towards the Forest of Illusion. It was balloon-shaped with a giant P on it. Daisy grabbed for it but the thing floated out of her reach.

 

Waluigi grabbed for the balloon as well, but it floated just out of his reach in a rather erratic pattern, floating back and forth, sometimes only forth and others only back. It was just outside their reaching range, even for Waluigi when he stood straight up. Frustrated, Ninjetta crouched down, leaping as far as she could into the air and grabbing the balloon. The touch caused Ninjetta to expand suddenly, filled with air.

 

"Ha!" Daisy jeered. "I always knew you were full of hot air!"

 

"But I'm---" Ninjetta protested but Daisy quickly cut her off.

 

"Don't talk. You'll let all the air out!" Daisy reached up, grabbing one of Ninjetta's legs. The air within the ninji was enough to make both float easily above the ground. "C'mon, Waluigi."

 

Ninjetta groaned, displeased she'd been turned into a balloon carrying two people across the waterfall. It was effective, at least, and she was happy to see that they'd all survived the ordeal. That Apricot was out for blood, but in the end, Apricot's blood was spilt.

 

They reached the opposite shore, and Ninjetta released the air from her lungs, mercilessly dropping the party on the ground and falling on top of them. "I didn't think I could hold my breath that long."

 

"Hm," the elder greeted them. "It's good to see you've returned in one piece. There wwwwwas a lot of noise, and we thought you might not make it."

 

"We almost didn't," Daisy admitted, pulling herself to her feet and readjusting her crown. "I... I really don't know how we did." The battle was still fresh within her mind. She still couldn't quite explain the hallucination she had nor the effect it had on the real world. She still wasn't entirely sure it _was_ a hallucination. "But whatever the case, it looks like that Apricot chick is down for the count."

 

The DS buzzed and rang, interrupting their conversation. Daisy opened it to find Professor E.Gadd excited on the screen with Dr. Toadley in the background.

 

"Ohoho, good to see you well, young feller!" the professor clapped excitedly. "We found something interesting! Chai has suddenly sprung back to life!"

 

Daisy nearly dropped the DS. "SERIOUSLY?!" She glanced down at Ninjetta who was still picking herself up off the ground. "We need to get there right now." If they could reach Chai soon enough, then maybe they'd catch up to the star eater and finally stop him.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> P-balloons are the best thing ever.


	16. Revelations in the stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heading to the newly recreated Chai Kingdom, the intrepid trio encounter some potential trouble and potential help. Will this hinder or help them in their quest to stop the star eater?

With a parting gift of more turnips from the wigglers of the Forest of Illusion, Daisy, Waluigi, and Ninjetta quickly arrived at the edge of Chai. The warp pipe within Chai was inaccessible, just as the one was on Donut Plains. The detour forced them to return to Peach's castle and pick up their motorcycles to make the trip a bit shorter. They'd left but not without excited words from the professor, who expressed the desire for more readings.

 

While the intrepid trio of heroes had been out investigating and fighting for their lives, the professor had been collecting all the data they sent back. The boardroom was filled with all sorts of technological wonders, complete with blinking lights and some sort of whirring engine. The professor called it the Regurgitator 2000. He had a way with names, truly, but this one was rather descriptive. He'd finally discovered a way to possibly return those lost to their original forms.

 

While he worked away on the creation with Dr. Toadley, the trio had left to investigate the new formations and possibly find Prince Peasley who had parted ways with them some time ago. Peasley had a way with investigations, preferring to work on his own with his own unusual Beanish methods. As odd as he was, his methods always worked for him, uncovering plots and finding the mysterious bad guys.

 

But right now, he was simply gone and Daisy hoped he wasn't lost to the destruction of the star eater.

 

Daisy suddenly halted the bike, nearly flipping Ninjetta off the back seat. "Oh man." Sure enough, before them stood a newly reformed Chai where that gaping hole once was. The landscape had been completely refashioned into something similar to what they'd seen at Donut Plains. Large leafy ferns lined the edge of the kingdom with deeper jungle-like plants further in. A perpetual night hung in the sky.

 

She paused to stare at it for a moment. Despite its origins, the night sky actually was really pretty. Stars dotted the dark blue and deep purple hues. A rather large moon hung low in the sky. And while she expected to hear crickets and toads singing their nightly chorus, once again, the newly reformed land was deadly silent.

 

Daisy frowned, playing with her engagement ring underneath her glove. It still felt warm, as it had when the crystals formed around her, protecting her from Apricot's onslaught. She still couldn't get that conversation she had with Luigi out of her mind. She couldn't discern if it were real or not. But if it weren't, it still brought her much needed relief that he was still alive.

 

"Looks like we'll need to go on foot," Daisy commented, kicking the stand up on the bike. Dismounting, she flipped open the DS to let it do its business, gathering readings from the surrounding area. It was the same as the Donut Plains, though like before, a sentient form was moving about within. "There's someone in there."

 

Ninjetta immediately clung to the back of Daisy's skirt. While she was prone to bouts of bravery, after their last encounter with Apricot and the hallucination prior, Ninjetta was still rather shook up. "You think she's still alive?"

 

Daisy frowned, staring at the readings on the DS. Even with the professor's simplification, they came across mostly as nonsense. "I dunno, but if she is, we'll have to stop her again, right?" She playfully punched Waluigi in the shoulder to get his attention. He didn't object or seem to have any sort of response whatsoever. He simply stood there, hunched over, staring at the forest. Perhaps he was in shock.

 

"Alright, let's go," Daisy announced, stepping forward and pushing the branches away. She turned back towards the other two and motioned for them to follow her.

 

"P-p-princess!" Ninjetta panicked, pointing furiously at the forest.

 

"Come oooon!" Daisy frowned, figuring it to be Ninjetta's nerves getting to her until she saw Waluigi stare more than normal. He'd practically unhinged his jaw, staring at _something_ while attempting to fish something from his backpack. "What is with you two?! Geez!" She turned to find herself face to face with a koopa.

 

He wasn't very tall, yellow skinned as most koopa were with glasses and a large blue wizard hat obscuring most of his features. He had a blue robe with white cuffs on the sleeves to match. He pushed his glasses further up his nose with his index finger, completely unfazed by the encounter.

 

"M-magikoopa!" Daisy lept back in surprise, reaching across her waist to attempt to withdraw her sword.

 

"Kamek," he corrected her. "There isn't a need for that."

 

"What are you doing here?!" Daisy demanded furiously. "If you're here to kidnap Peach, you can forget it. You're too late!" She blurted out the last part, but it wasn't exactly a secret anymore. Practically the whole world knew that Mario, Luigi, _an_ d Peach had all disappeared. Word had spread of all the recent attacks and disappearances. Everyone knew.

 

Kamek pushed his glasses up again seemingly habitually. He was growing more irritated with her, though her hostility wasn't exactly unfounded. He enjoyed tormenting Yoshi and sometimes Mario too. It was fun. "Cut it out!" he shouted at her, letting his temper get the better of him. "I'm not here to fight _you_! I want to fight that star eater!"

 

Daisy stared at him stupidly, her sword partially withdrawn from its sheath. "You what?" It wasn't as much of a surprise that he knew of the star eater but that he wanted to fight it. And that he was _alone_.

 

"Don't you listen?!" Kamek squawked at her.

 

Daisy blinked at him. "Yeah, I do, actually! I don't get why you're having such a change of heart! Since when did you ever help us?!"

 

Kamek could feel his blood beginning to boil. he narrowed his eyes behind his glasses, sneering slightly in anger. "Because that blasted star eater has nearly swallowed all of His Nastiness's kingdom and people! He sent me to stop it!"

 

Daisy paused again before sliding the sword back into its sheath. "Not that I care or anything, but is Bowser...? and that punk kid of his?"

 

Kamek shook his head. "Only Junior." Bowser had survived the ordeal, but he was still recovering from the last bout with Mario. It had left him a bit banged up and unprepared for such a fight. While Kamek had done everything in his power, even his own magic couldn't stop the star eater's effects. He was the most powerful magikoopa in the world but somehow he didn't have the power to fight this thing. Kammy Koopa had been in his ear, nagging him about the situation and things to do about it, but he'd left her behind to watch over their liege while he left to investigate.

 

Daisy's expression softened. She was starting to feel like Peach, feeling that compassion melt her usually rigid and strong heart. True, she cared about others, but she usually had a strict line between enemy and friend. This star eater had really started to change her, to force her to show compassion to those she usually considered enemies. She already had to align herself with Waluigi, and he was proving to be a valuable ally.

 

"Alright, look," Daisy reasoned with him. "This situation is getting worse by the moment. We really need all the help we can get." She glanced back at Waluigi who seemed a bit uncertain about the situation. Not that she could particularly tell, as he continued to stand hunched over, his jaw unhinged as he watched the exchange between Daisy and Kamek.

 

"Especially with _this_ popping up suddenly," Daisy added, motioning to the forest behind the magikoopa. "Places are recreating themselves. This star eater is changing the world as we know it, changing it to what I guess is his liking. All because of these colors he's collected."

 

Kamek glanced behind him. "That so," he commented. He'd gotten lost in the forest, looking for clues on the magic that he kept sensing. He didn't want to admit it, but the power pervading the area surpassed even his own. The colors sounded familiar but he hadn't quite put the reference together.

 

"Why don't you come with us?" Daisy offered. It was strangely generous of her, but lately, she had learned that allies come in all forms, Waluigi included. And right now, with fighting something which can reshape and reform the world, she needed a strong and magically powerful ally, something she lacked in her ragtag group.

 

Kamek watched her carefully for a moment, observing the small ninji practically glued to the back of her leg. Waluigi was an interesting one too, strange and difficult to interpret. Kamek often wondered if he actually was capable of comprehensive thought. Yet at this moment, Kamek was low on options. Daisy had the knowledge he needed to restore Bowser's kingdom, and he had a knowledge of magic. The two could easily be unstoppable, and it would be more acceptable to align with Daisy than Mario or that green guy.

 

"Very well," he agreed. She smiled with a friendly, confident nod then motioned for everyone to follow her into the jungle. DS in hand, she took continuous readings, all streaming back to Professor E. Gadd's database. Surely this information would do him well in creating something to restore the lost people. The DS began beeping, interrupting their investigation. Daisy actually payed attention to the screen this time, observing the strange readouts. "We're not alone."

 

"Please don't tell me it's Apricot again," Ninjetta clung to the back of Daisy's dress once again.

 

"How could you mistake someone as amazing as I?" the voice resounded followed by a surprisingly bright flash of light. It took the entire group by surprise. Even Kamek had summoned his wand to his hand. Daisy jumped backwards, placing a hand on the nearby tree. Her touch had transformed it into bamboo, a plant that once was native to Chai.

 

As the light subsided, Prince Peasley emerged on his flying green bean, his hand extended out to the side as he flipped his blond hair dramatically.

 

"Peasley!" Daisy exclaimed. "You're alive?!"

 

"But of course, princess!" Peasley replied somewhat boisterously. "I've been investigating on a secret mission! And I have the answers I seek! and then some!"

 

"Don't scare us like that! Geez." Daisy shouted, brandishing a hand at him. "But now that you're here, don't keep us in suspense! Spill it!"

 

"So impatient, but do not fret!" Peasley grinned smugly. "I have many answers. I believe I know the key to our success." He pointed a gloved finger at Daisy, tapping her on the forehead. "You."

 

"Me?!" Daisy stared at him, rather unsure of his response. "What good will I do? The best I've done is nearly get myself killed twice!"

 

Peasley waggled his finger at her, rejecting her statement. Then quickly thumbed at the tree she was leaning on. "Do you know why you are a khenet? You can change things, shape the world, and keep it that way. You've always been that way. It draws people to you."

 

"What about Wario?" Waluigi butted in. "Star eater kidnapped him too."

 

"That's just it, my purple friend!" Peasley replied. "There are _two_ khenet! That is why the star eater cannot finish his work. That is why you were attacked and Sarasaland stolen."

 

Kamek listened to the conversation quietly. He'd heard of legends of restorations and recreations, but he didn't fully recognize the words. They were in an ancient language he didn't know. But his mind flashed back to Daisy's mention of colors collected to set all of this in motion. "A world engine..." he mumbled. He'd researched the information for Bowser so that his liege could create his own world, perhaps even a galaxy. It was actually possible and this star eater had done it himself, and it had nearly cost Kamek everything. This information was too powerful for anyone to know or use. This world engine had to be destroyed.

 

Daisy looked back and forth between Kamek and Peasley. "Well it looks like we're all kinda on the same page here, but that doesn't help us stop it or reverse the damages."

 

"I cannot tell you that," Peasley shook his head, "but I can tell you where to find him."

 

"WAIT," Daisy shouted, staring in surprise at the beanish prince. "You know where to find him?! Why didn't you just say so!"

 

"Now now," Peasley grinned, flipping his hair once more. "I didn't say at first because I know not how to actually _get_ there."

 

"Where is it?" Daisy pressed on.

 

Peasley jabbed a finger at the eternally night sky hanging above them. "The dark side of the moon."

 

Daisy stared at the moon, somewhat defeated. They were so close to stopping the star eater, yet so far away. Without Rosalina, getting off this world would be near impossible. "How.. how can we fight something we can't even reach?" After all their work and information, was there truly no way to stop something that was eating their world city by city?

 

Kamek stared up at the moon as well. While this star eater was well out of his magical league, the magikoopa was still an incredibly powerful wizard. "I think I can handle that part."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kamek is somewhat of a neutral character, at least in the RPGs. He's really only antagonistic towards Mario because he believes that his liege, Bowser, is better than him in all ways. Otherwise, he simply doesn't care. He does what is necessary to please his king, and despite Bowser's rather destructive ways, I honestly cannot see him passing on information about the world engine, especially not after how much it's destroyed Bowser's land and people.


	17. Crystal walls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Kamek's magic, the intrepid quartet travel to the moon to face off against the star eater., They arrive at his castle, but what horror could be waiting within the walls?

The last place Daisy ever expected to find herself was off the Mushroom World and now here she was, with Waluigi, Ninjetta, and Kamek at her side. Prince Peasley had stayed behind to monitor things from world-side. If Apricot made a return, he'd be sure to stop her with his smashing good looks.

 

Before they'd left, Daisy called the professor. She had expected some hesitation from him, warning her not to go, but instead he seemed overly excited. He wanted readings, of course, but she'd get what she could. Ninjetta would, actually, as Daisy had shoved the DS into her hands.

 

Professor E. Gadd and Dr. Toadley had made considerable amounts of progress on their restoration machine, the Regurgitator 2000, claiming it would soon be complete, but the world engine needed to be stopped first. They needed to steal the power source and return it to the world below.

 

Before she hung up with the professor, Daisy made a promise. While she certainly didn't like Bowser, she promised Kamek that she'd help restore Bowser Junior if they could. It was the least she could offer in exchange for his help.

 

Kamek's teleportation magic had brought the intrepid would-be heroes to the moon's surface. They stood on the rocky ground, looking out at a rather large structure made unlike anything they'd ever seen. It stood tall against the starry night backdrop, made of some sort of black crystal. The structure had triangular spires pushing up towards the sky. It resembled what had grown from the ground when Daisy fought Apricot but on a much larger, more horrifying scale.

 

"This is it, the final battle," Daisy announced. "Let's just hope everyone's alive." She could feel herself shaking inside, but she had to stay strong. She was facing something that had swallowed nearly half the Mushroom World. She had no idea what to expect.

 

She was certain Apricot had been the star eater, but upon her defeat, nothing had changed. She'd also returned twice, the second time appearing to not be in control of her own actions. In a way, she pitied Apricot, thrown into this mess, stolen from somewhere and forced to work against her own will much like the possessed ninji that had swarmed Mushroom City. And every time Daisy had encountered her, she felt like she knew Apricot from somewhere.

 

Using teleportation magic once again, Kamek took the group inside the walls of the castle. A direct approach, while perhaps amusing, would hardly be wise. It would alert this star eater, given that he wasn't already aware of their presence.

 

They appeared in what seemed like a hallway which only lead in one direction. Ingenious if one were to get lost and stuck in a dead end. Fortunately for them, they had arrived at the end, leaving them only one direction to go. The hallway was dark, lined with the same black crystal as the outside. Stars barely twinkled within the walls.

 

"Princess, look!" Ninjetta pointed at the walls. "It's Pascal!"

 

Barely beyond the edge of the room stood a pidgit frozen in the wall. Pascal had rescued Daisy once before, back when she'd nearly thrown herself into the pit which once was Birabuto. He helped lead the search for refugees. He was a good pidgit.

 

But he wasn't alone. As their eyes adjusted to the darkness, the group could see more and more residents of Sarasaland and Fortune Street locked in an eternal slumber.

 

"He's lined his castle with my own people?" She could feel her heart breaking, her mind growing angrier and slightly hopeless. Was there no way to save them, no way to restore them to life? What good was a Regurgitator 2000 if the people weren't even alive.

 

Daisy bit her lower lip, closing her eyes for a moment. She had to think, to keep hope and keep going. She made a promise to save everyone, and she was going to do it. She would shatter the walls herself if she had to. Turning, she continued down the halls, the other three following her. More ninji and pidgit were embedded within the walls, but the scenery changed to koopa, goomba, and other minions of Bowser, with Bowser Junior among them. Kamek glared at the wall, scrutinizing it to see if he could break it. He had to save Junior at all costs.

 

More people lined the hallways, many were residents of Fortune Street and beanish and fighter flies from the BeanBean Kingdom. Then at the end of the hallway was an unexpected sight. Apricot was embedded in the walls, her eyes closed as she gripped her shoulder. Her expression was a strange twist of pain and horror, but she was alive and breathing. Her head hung low as she leaned forward, her unconscious body partially embedded into the wall. Her knees protruded from the wall as well, but the rest remained encased in crystal.  
  
Daisy paused before her, looking up at the unconscious figure. She'd caused so much trouble and pain, but she was like the rest of them, wasn't she? "Another victim."

 

Ninjetta looked up at her liege, surprised by her words. Apricot had done nothing but attempt to kill Daisy, but now she was showing a compassion towards her. "What do you mean, Princess?"

 

Daisy looked down at Ninjetta, her face somewhat twisted from the pain of seeing this wall of victims. "Apricot's just another victim, like those shadow Ninji in Mushroom City. She was being controlled. I sure of it." She paused, looking back at Apricot's unconscious form. "I have to know. I have to know who she is."  
  
Ninjetta stared up at her liege, contemplating on stopping her, but deep down inside, Ninjetta desired to know as well. She reached her hand out for a moment but quickly withdrew it, staring at the figure embedded in the wall. She hated Apricot, she really did, but in a way, she now pitied her. She was a victim of this star eater just like the rest of them.  
  
Daisy reached up, gently pulling the mask down then nearly fell over backwards, gasping in surprise as she backed up against the opposing wall. "It can't be!"  
  
Without the mask obscuring her features, Daisy immediately recognized her. There was no way she'd mistake that face anywhere. Underneath the makeup and fancy costumes was Daisy's best friend. The star eater had turned Peach against her, transforming her into some bloodthirsty ravenous beast intent on destroying the second Khenet. She stared, her face twisting a contorted mix of horror and anger. She could feel her heart beat faster. "How could he... He did this to you! My best friend in the whole wide World! And I tried to kill you! Damn him! Damn that star eater!"  
  
Ninjetta glanced between Peach and her liege. She could feel the pain in her own heart, but she was more worried about how Daisy felt. The star eater hadn't just stolen her friends and her home, he was turning them against her.  
  
Daisy leaned back against the crystal wall, closing her eyes for a moment, catching her breath. Being furious wouldn't help the situation. She had to think then unleash her fury on the star eater. He was to blame for all of this. Daisy glanced suddenly down the hall at the magikoopa who had remained some distance behind them, staring at his own liege behind the wall. "Can you save them? And I mean all of them."

 

"I'm not a miracle worker," the koopa frowned, "but I'd be lying if I said I couldn't." He was certainly a powerful magikoopa, one capable of all sorts of wizardly. He had some knowledge of galactic magic, but it was limited. Most of it was related to teleportation magic and powering a galactic starship. Bowser was more inclined to build the larger more mechanical things. "These things take a lot of time."

 

Daisy sighed sharply, still attempting to collect her thoughts. Everything took a lot of time, lately. The bad galactic joojoo really was making a mess of things. "Look, let's stop this world engine thing first then get to the wall. Without an engine, it should technically interrupt the star eater's work, right?" She fished for some reassurance, though no one in the group was all too certain. They really had no idea what a galactic engine was or how to shut one off. They only knew they had to save everyone from this horror.

 

Kamek paused for a moment. Her words did actually make sense. If the star eater continued to eat the World, it possibly could swallow up his liege and then he'd have more people to rescue in the end, which meant more work and a bigger headache after Bowser started yelling. He also didn't think that Daisy could take the star eater on her own. Her company was hardly battle worthy and probably couldn't contribute much to help the situation. Waluigi seemed more resilient than Ninjetta, but even he looked like he'd snap in half in the wind.

 

"Very well," Kamek pushed his glasses back up his nose. He had made a deal with her and as shady as he was, he considered himself somewhat honorable. He followed through with his promises.

 

Their options on where to search for the engine were pretty limited. The hallway where they entered was one-way, turning left and opening up to a large room.

 

Dimly lit, the room whirred with sounds of machinery and a strange bubbling noise. Along the closest wall were dozens of monitors, some lit while others fell silent. The lit monitors showed images from across the Mushroom World. Daisy recognized some as visuals of the Donut Plains and Chai, showing the signs of the recreation of the lost world. One of the far monitors showed the outskirts of what was once Muda, the oceanic kingdom in Sarasaland. It was in the process of regrowing at rapid rates. The water was quickly rising and from the ground sprouted ferns and leafy trees similar to what she'd already seen in the other restored lands. That star eater had been watching everything, seeing his own work come to life, literally, as he destroyed the life which had once been there before.

 

"Wario!" Waluigi's sudden exclamation had snapped Daisy from her staring contest with the monitors.  
  
Behind where she once stood were four large vats, all made of glass. Inside were several people suspended within some sort of nebulous gas. The top of the vats were connected by a rather large, metallic hose to machinery along the back wall. The lights on the machines twinkled like bright stars within the darkness of the room. The first vat contained Mario and Birdo, the red stars. The second contained the turquoise star, Rosalina, with Luigi, the green star, in the third. In the fourth were Wario and Starlow, the yellow stars. "We have to get them out of there!"

 

Kamek nearly gaped at the scene. He could only surmise this contraption was the world engine, combining the powers of the four colors of creation to remake the world as the star eater saw fit. Sure he didn't particularly care for Mario or the others, but this seemed a bit extreme, even for him. Kamek's entire initiative was to further Bowser's plans to rule the World, but at this rate, there wouldn't be a world to rule if the star eater had its way. And if saving Mario and company meant preserving a world worth overthrowing, then he'd rescue the annoying plumber and his friends.

 

Daisy glued herself to the glass prison holding Luigi. He looked weary and weak, as if the life were being drained slowly from his body, literally becoming a battery for the world engine. It all made sense now. The four colors Dr. Toadley had seen in his readings, Apricot's babbling about khenet, even that weird hallucination where she spoke to Luigi. These four represented the colors to create worlds, but it probably was costing their lives to do so.

 

She tapped on the glass. It was pretty thick and the only way out seemed to be the top. That unknown nebulous substance inside also could be a problem. "We have to get them outta there," she repeated.

 

"That won't be happening, _khenet._ "  
  
Waluigi snapped around at the voice. It was him, the man with the stardust hair. He hadn't been able to describe the mysterious man before, his lack of words getting the better of him, yet now he didn't have to. He jabbed a finger angrily at the man, hunching over and glaring up at him. "You! Waluigi gonna cheat you outta everything!"  
  
Daisy stared at Waluigi for a moment then back to the man with stardust hair. Could it be, this was the real star eater?

 

 


	18. Perfect World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ragtag group of heroes finally find the galactic creature known as the star eater. But are their combined forces enough to stop the star eater's destruction?

He floated before them, seemingly standing on a nebulous black cloud with stars faintly twinkling within them. He was a tall man, seemingly human, with a long cloak made of the stars. His hair was scraggly, covered in stardust. "I must applaud your determination, second Khenet," he stared at Daisy with piercing eyes. "I didn't expect you to get this far."  
  
Daisy quickly scowled at the man, baring her teeth in an attempt to control the rage building up within her heart. "Who the hell do you think you are, star eater?! Eating my people and my friends, destroying my home! Well?! Answer me, dammit!"  
  
"I am Seth," he replied calmly. "I am a Starborne. I fix broken worlds."  
  
"The hell you do!" Daisy seethed at him, stepping forward. She practically drove her heels through the crystal floor as she moved. "My world isn't broken! Sure it's not the greatest place, but it's my damn world!" She hastily withdrew her sword, gripping it tightly in both hands. She would beat this Starborne or whatever until he could no longer move then take back her friends, her people, and her world.  
  
Seth held his ground, unmoving as he scrutinized her. "I see," he commented, ignoring her threats and shouting. Seeing her in person clarified many questions within the Starborne's mind. He had watched her from afar, even sent shadows to gather data, but the information never seemed to add up. Time and time again, she was capable of thwarting him and even had the power to restructure the world around her. Both powers seemed to reach outside the bounds of a Khenet, the symbol of eternal persistence. "I believed you simply a khenet, but there is more to you, isn't there?"  
  
Daisy narrowed her eyes at him, continuing to grip her sword tightly. He'd caught her off guard, and she let the curiosity get the better of her. She decided to humor him for a moment. "The hell do you mean?"  
  
"I've been observing you for some time," he admitted, drawing a hand outward from beneath his cloak to motion at the monitors.  
  
"So you've been watching me in the shower?!" Daisy interjected.  
  
Seth didn't acknowledge her statement, choosing to continue. "Your power, I believed it simply khenet, but you have more to you. You have aspects of the four colors of creation and destruction, the power to destroy and rebuild. You alone could have fueled the world engine. I would not have spent so much effort using weak resources."  
  
She was taken aback for a moment. She had that sort of power? There was no way he was right. She didn't have any galactic power or whatever. She was just someone who wanted to save her friends and that star eater had just insulted them. "They're not weak! You take that back!"  
  
"The other colors have been resisting my power," Seth continued. "Their strength makes them quite a weak resource in terms of power. However such strength can only rebuild a stronger, more perfect world. For this reason, I've traveled such a distance, to seek out the strength of this world."  
  
Daisy glanced slightly over her shoulder. Six of her friends, if she could truly list Wario among friends, hung nearly lifelessly in a galactic soup. They'd been resisting this entire time, attempting to thwart the star eater in their own way. No wonder the star eater had to kidnap more of her friends. They resisted him so he required more to make up what power he couldn't draw from them. But what did that mean for Luigi or Rosalina? Were they not strong enough to resist him or were there simply no stand-ins, no secondary power to fuel the Starborne's efforts?  
  
She spotted Waluigi standing slightly in front of the vats, his bow drawn. His face had contorted into somewhat of a sneer, his jaw unhinged as he glared at Seth. He hadn't made a move, continuing to stare. Daisy couldn't fathom what was running through his mind. In the past month, she'd come to realize that there was more to Waluigi than he let on. There was a real person underneath. She couldn't determine how intelligible this person was, but there was someone there, someone determined to save Wario.  
  
Kamek beside him was another mystery. He joined them by chance and a hasty promise. Daisy wasn't sure what to make of him, and koopas weren't entirely known for their ability to emote. Much of his face was obscured by a large hat and glasses, but what she could see of him told her what she needed to know. Kamek was bearing his few teeth in anger. He'd withdrawn his wand, prepared to launch an attack at moment's notice.  
  
Ninjetta was nowhere to be seen. Daisy reasoned she stowed herself in a safe spot, but in truth, she'd used her darker shade to hide among the shadows, sneaking behind the vats and springing up the wall where the pipes left the vats and traveled elsewhere. She squeezed through the crevasse where the pipes drove through the wall, attempting to follow them and find their source, hopefully to turn them off.  
  
Daisy turned back to the star eater. They could win this battle. They had to, else there would be nothing left. She quickly drew her sword over her shoulder, lunging forward with heavy steps. She swung at Seth a few times, but quickly withdrew as her sword sliced clean through him, the swipe leaving a trail of nebulous mist. "The hell are you?!"  
  
"Cute," Seth commented snidely, tilting his head slightly to the side. "Such innocent thinking will not save you."  
  
She could feel the doubt well up inside her. Truly, what was she thinking? This was a galactic being, and she was just one human from a rock in a galaxy. She gripped her sword tightly. She wasn't about to give up, but certainly she didn't have a clue how to win.  
  
Triangles, circles, and squares whizzed past her, quickly stirring her from her thoughts. The geometry impacted with the monitors displaying images of the World below them, causing Seth to slightly move out of the magic's path. "I believe it is you who is outmatched," Kamek boasted, pushing his glasses up with one finger, a smirk tracing the edges of his sharp jaw. He didn't know what a Starborne really was, nor did he particularly care, but his reasoning was right. He surmised that he could counter the galactic magic with a bit of his own psychic magic, and sure enough, the star eater reacted. It was enough of an indication to confirm that the magikoopa actually had the advantage.  
  
"An uncalculated interference," Seth stared at Kamek, scrutinizing the creature. Kamek didn't match any of the known colors, no word to truly describe him. He was a combination of yellow and blue, but neither fit the power he had just displayed.  
  
Daisy glanced at both Kamek and Waluigi, offering each a nod. There was really only one logical choice to defeat this star creature, and she hoped the other two came to the same conclusion. With Kamek the only one who could currently affect the star eater, Daisy and Waluigi could serve for some distraction while Kamek destroyed Seth. "Well you got three interferences now!"  
  
Kamek was a strategist. He could reason what Daisy was thinking, and the idea was sound. With enough distraction, he could create some devastating psychic magic, enough to at least phase the star eater back into an attackable form. Waluigi seemed to understand as well, pulling back the strings on his bow and firing an arrow straight through Seth's head. While it phased completely through him, it provided the needed distraction. They were taking the focus off Kamek, allowing him time to craft a spell which could potentially throw Seth into a phase of tangible existence.  
  
Daisy was hardly a tactician, but she knew that Kamek would need time. At least that's what she thought. He'd said earlier he needed time to teleport everyone out of the walls, so he probably needed time to work whatever magic he could on getting this galactic creature into something she could attack. She swung at him repeatedly, unleashing her fury on his wispy form. She couldn't hit him but it sure felt good to swing at something and destroy the monitors behind him.  
  
It was a horrifying thought, really, to think that all this time this Starborne had been watching their every move. She couldn't comprehend how he thought that the World was so broken that it need to be destroyed and reformed. It pissed her off just thinking about it, and she channeled that anger through the sword. He stared at her attempts with a smug look of superiority. She wanted to wipe that stupid grin off his stupid face, but her attempts were just a waste of energy. Even so, it felt good to swing at something.  
  
And with every swing, she thought of the pain and suffering this Starborne had caused, how he destroyed her lands and many other lands around the World. He destroyed lives. Those people had families and histories and friends, and now they were all gone, thanks to this self-righteous creature. It wasn't just her own pain on her mind, it was everyone else's. She could come across as pigheaded and sometimes ignorant, but underneath, she always concerned herself with others. It was a trait she and Peach both shared. It just wasn't as apparent with her as it was with Peach. She was always just the best friend, but right now, she was the hero, the one throwing herself into the face of danger to save everyone. She'd show everyone she cared too.  
  
She unleashed another swing, Peach still on her mind. Her best friend had been subject to whatever the star eater had done to brainwash her. Hopefully Peach wouldn't remember and everything would return to normal. Daisy would have to think of Apricot and Peach as separate people, because in truth, they were. The two couldn't be more different.  
  
With her mind filled with anger, sorrow, and determination, Daisy put more power into the last swing. Seth grinned at her smugly but his expression quickly shifted to excruciating pain. Kamek's spell had worked. The Starborne was now tangible.  
  
Now Daisy wore the smug look. "I'm gonna send you back to whatever galactic hell you came from!"  
  
Seth glanced at Kamek. He'd underestimated the power of the creature. He had to admit that Daisy had assembled some interesting allies, but it was their strength which disgusted him. These beings were broken. They contained such power but it was masked by horrible amounts of anger. Their World was in constant battle with itself, and the energies of creation were wasted. A great epoch was drawing to a close and as a Starborne, he was the one to recreate it. It was his duty, to restore the worlds, to renew them.  
  
His thoughts were interrupted as Waluigi drove an arrow through his other shoulder. He grimaced in pain. He'd never felt such a feeling before. How could these creatures bring him to such a level? "Enough!" he shouted, pushing Daisy back with a swift jab to her midsection. "Enough games! This ends now. I will finish my duty." Yanking the arrow from his shoulder, he spread his arms out, his cloak flaring out to the sides revealing a galaxy within its folds. His form dissipated, forming nebulous gasses filled with new stars and old, both thriving and dying. These were his creation; this was his starbed. He would use their energy to create more stars, to continue to live on for more millennia and recreate more worlds. This was his duty as a Starborne.  
  
Daisy took a few steps back, still gripping her sword. "Uh oh."  
  
"Cheater!" Waluigi shouted, jabbing an index finger at the nebulous blob. "No one cheats better than Waluigi!" He pulled a bomb from his bag, lighting the end with a flick of a match. He wasn't about to get out-cheated. He was the number one cheater, after all, and he planned to keep it that way. Rearing back, he threw the bomb over handed at the nebulous blob. It sailed through it, impacting with the remains of the monitors behind, causing them to short out.  
  
Daisy stared for a moment. If was shorting them out, perhaps it would help short everything out in the castle. "Do it again! Don't let him outcheat you!"  
  
Waluigi wasn't about to think twice about throwing another. For the first time in his life, Daisy was actually cheering him on, encouraging him, and probably believing in him. It was a warming feeling, but not so warm he didn't toss another four bombs at the nebulous blob. Electricity snaked from the monitors across the walls of the room. The light in the room dimmed as the power surged. Some noises came from behind the wall. Some groaning, a switch, and a winding down motor, followed by a very faint cheer.  
  
 _Ninjetta, you clever ninji_ , Daisy smirked to herself. Only one person she knew made that sort of squealish sound. Ninjetta must've slinked away when no one was looking, but her effort had presented Daisy with a devilish idea. On the balls of her heeled shoes, Daisy turned completely around, taking wide strides back to the vats.  
  
"Take this, ya damn space gas!" She pulled her sword to the left side and swung with all her might. The blade impacted with the vat holding Luigi captive. She could feel the energy surge up her arms as the blade sliced through the edge of the tank, releasing the nebulous mass which had kept its victim in suspension. Luigi slipped out of the hole Daisy's blade had created in the glass. As she dropped her sword, preparing to take Luigi into her arms, the nebulous mass once contained in the vat began surrounding her. It pecked and pulled on her like a swarm of a thousand tiny piranhas. That was a bad idea. A terrible idea. She'd freed Luigi but sacrificed herself in the process. _As long as Luigi lives on._  
  
"This ends now," Seth declared. His nebulous form grew larger and larger, encompassing everything around them and swallowing both the moon and the World whole.

 

 


	19. Darkness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The world has fallen dark, the star eater enveloping the Mushroom World and its moon in darkness. But somehow a light has survived within the darkness. Can Daisy fight against the monstrosity threatening to destroy everything?

It hurt. Everything hurt. She felt like she was being pulled apart bit by bit. It was slow and painful, like watching an hourglass drop one grain of sand at a time. She couldn't feel the ground beneath her anymore nor the coldness of the steel against her arms and legs. She could only feel something pressing against her. She opened her eyes. Truthfully she thought she did, but she wasn't certain. Everything was dark and nebulous, save a few stray stars in the distance and a golden light surrounding her. She was alone. Where had everyone gone?  
  
She had failed. Completely. Utterly. Beyond the point of no return. She wanted to punch something or throw her shoe at it, but there wasn't anything tangible within reach. Tears rolled down her cheeks. That she could feel. She wanted to shout and scream and sob uncontrollably, but nothing came out. The light around her began to dim as she felt her heart sink further and further into despair. She never asked for this. She never asked for any of this. She just wanted to be happy and settle down with her childhood friend. She never asked to be khenet.  
  
But khenet was the color of eternal persistence, wasn't it? Peasley had said something along those lines, but the star eater had said something further. He pointed her out as a khenet but something more, that she could've powered the entire world engine herself. She didn't have that power. She never did. She was stubborn enough to be a khenet but not everything else.  
  
She swung at the darkness, feeling it weigh down her movements and resist. The golden glow she had was quickly fading. She opened her hand, hoping to grab something, anything, when she noticed around her finger was a green band. It was her engagement band, the one she picked out with the engraved daisies. She could feel the same warmth in that hand as it felt when Luigi held it. Then it quickly dawned on her.  
  
She didn't possess the power of the four colors herself, not entirely at least. Khenet was indeed her own. It represented her stubbornness and energy. It was, as Peasley had said, a trait that attracted others to her. That power alone wasn't able to recreate the world. That was green, Luigi. She shared a bond with Luigi like no other, and that bond had been manifesting itself as the restorative color, w3d. It shone through when she touched things, like when she fought Apricot and suddenly changed the trees in Chai back to bamboo. The power she borrowed from him caused this to happen and combined with her own.  
  
Mfk3t, turquoise represented by Rosalina. Daisy had come to know Rosalina mostly through Peach. She probably annoyed the star princess on a consistent basis, but Rosalina was more than happy to share her star books with Daisy and watch the stars with her. A few months back, Daisy had invited Rosalina to Sarasaland for a sleepover party. Daisy wanted to get to know Rosalina, to befriend her. She'd been indirect about it, forcefully demanding Rosalina visit to watch the meteor shower. Daisy didn't truly expect Rosalina to show up, but the star princess did. They talked about stars, and Rosalina told stories of comets traveling through the galaxy. They found that despite being so drastically different, they still had a lot in common.  
  
Dshr, red, represented by Mario and Birdo. While Daisy knew Birdo very little, it was her relationship with Mario that gave her the power of red. Daisy had known Mario a very long time through Peach. The boys had spent a good deal of time with Peach at the castle when they were growing up, and Daisy came to visit every so often. She'd befriended Mario first, as he'd approached her to chat and share a snack. Luigi's friendship came later, as he spent most of their playdates crying.  
  
It sounded horribly campy and like something Peach would say, but it made complete sense to Daisy. The power of the other three colors of destruction and creation didn't come from within her, it came from her friendships outside, her strongest one being with Luigi.  
  
 _"You continue to persist."_  The disembodied voice filled her ears, distracting her from her campy thoughts.  _"But you cannot fight inevitability."  
_  
"Your stupid engine is gone, star eater!" Daisy shouted back at him. "The only inevitability is that you won't succeed!"  
  
 _"I don't need the engine anymore,"_  Seth countered, stirring the darkness around Daisy.  _"I have you."  
_  
"Like hell you do!" Daisy fussed, wriggling in the darkness and fighting against it. It tried to constrain her, to move her to and fro in some sort of energy draining dance. The light she put off repelled the darkness, allowing her to wiggle free of its grip. She didn't want to be taken by the star eater, to have her power and the power of her friends used to create some dystopiate world.  
  
 _"Just where do you think you are?"  
_  
Daisy paused, frowning a bit. He had a point. She wasn't entirely sure where she was anymore. She couldn't feel the world around her or hear anyone around her. She was some strange golden human-shaped ball of light.  
  
 _"You are inside me,"_  Seth concluded for her.  
  
"That's disgusting!" Daisy shouted, returning to wriggling. She didn't want to be inside anything, especially not as a seemingly naked energy thing, whatever she'd become. She felt like she was wading through water in the oceanic kingdom of Muda back home.  
  
That was it, of course. She flipped sideways, using her arms to push her along and feet to kick and propel her. She could swim her way out.  
  
 _"That will get you nowhere,"_ Seth chided her.  
  
"Oh yeah?!" she challenged him, swimming harder and harder. She had no dress to drag her down, no armor to make herself sink. There was no gravity or bubbles to push her to and fro. She wasn't entirely sure where she was going but something attracted her, something in her mind. The professor had been working on something aptly named the Regurgitator 9000. The name constantly disgusted her, bringing thoughts of too much partying to her mind. For once, however, she found the name amusing, thinking that if she could reach it, it could regurgitate her back to her human form.  
  
As she swam further and further down, she began to hear voices.  
  
 _"The sky's grown dark, by boogity!"_ The voice belonged to one of Peach's retainers, a young toad by the name of Toadbert. He had an odd way of speaking and was always too overly excited about nothing, at least in Daisy's opinion.  
  
 _"Ohoho, sonny! You're right!"_ The professor. Perfect! She had to reach out to him somehow, perhaps get his instruments to start measuring her and interpret some sort of message.  
  
 _"Is it 2 in the afternoon? It is!"_ Doctor Toadley always had a habit of asking dumb questions then answering them. Daisy never did understand why he did that, but right now that wasn't a major concern on her mind.  
  
She reached out for the voices but was quickly jerked back as Seth wrapped a nebulous hand around her ankle. She attempted to kick at him, but her foot simply went through his arm. "Get off!"  
  
"Your efforts are in vain," he informed her bluntly, his mouth forming of stars and swirls as he spoke. "You cannot fight the natural cycle."  
  
"I don't care!" Daisy shouted again, attempting to kick him to no avail. "This is my home! My world, my friends, my damn life! And I'm going to take it back!"  
  
 _"Ohoho, I'm getting the most unusual readings nearby!"_  She could hear the professor clap excitedly at the whirring of nearby instruments that clicked away. Daisy could practically see his spotted bald head and one tuft of hair bouncing about in his chair as he observed readings and interpreted them in ways that completely dumbfounded her.  
  
"Professor!" she shouted towards the direction of his voice. "PROFESSOR!!!!"  
  
"He cannot hear you, Khenet," Seth informed her, yanking more on her leg and pulling her back upwards towards where the moon once stood. "You will fulfill your use. You are the destruction and creation, the restoration that will bring new life to a new world. You are the ekpyrosis and palingenesis of this cosmic Great Year."  
  
"I am not your ekkythingy or palliwhatever!" Daisy protested, attempting to counter his force by swimming with her arms. She really wished for a frog suit at this moment, but she wouldn't even know where to look for one. She was nowhere near water if she were close enough to hear the professor and the rest of the group stationed at Peach's Castle. She persisted, swimming frantically like a panicking little frog. She was getting nowhere, but neither was the star eater. She'd exerted enough force to counter his pull, but how long could she keep this up?  
  
She suddenly felt Seth release her foot, causing her to tumble forward in the darkness. Flipping around to where Seth was, or at least his form created by swirls and stars, she saw a new form, a geometric one of a triangle sitting on a circle which then sat on a square. It wiggled and bent as the shapes balanced on each other.  
  
The stars forming Seth shifted as he turned to sneer at the geometry. "You! But how? You should not be able to survive in such conditions. You do not fit any of the four colors."  
  
"I am not a color," the shapes hissed, "I am psychokinetic magic. You may have reduced me to mere shapes but you severely underestimate how pissed I am at you. I am the greatest magician this world has ever seen."  
  
Daisy stared at the shapes. This was just too trippy, like her mind had finally left her and she was hallucinating somewhere in a ditch, drooling like a fool. The shapes moved individually but appeared to move all in one unit. How something like this could exist was beyond her understanding, but then again, there she was, suspended in darkness like a huge glowing human blob of golden light. It took her a moment before she put the overall shape and the use of geometry together. "Kamek?"  
  
The shapes shifted, the circle rolling back and forth, rather irritated. "Yes!" he squawked at her. If he had arms, he'd be shaking them at her as he fussed. "Now get down there and fix this damn place while I take care of this pretentious fool!"  
  
She didn't give it a second thought. She turned and continued to attempt to swim back towards the voice of the professor. She couldn't hear it anymore, unsure of how far the star eater had actually dragged her. She swam and swam until something gripped her again. "Damn star eater! Leggo!" She turned to kick him only to notice what had grabbed her was a purple orb.  
  
"Waaaaaaaa~" it said, distorting into an odd egg shape.  
  
"Waluigi!" she shouted at the orb. "We need to get back to the professor! That Regurgitator thingamajig'll help us fix this."  
  
The orb paused, leaving Daisy to ponder exactly what was going through his mind. She'd seen the humanity still inside him as he fought mercilessly to save Wario from the star eater. He'd gone to great lengths in order to cheat the star eater and win. And now he was reduced to a purple orb in this nightmare the star eater had caused. She still wasn't certain that she was really seeing what she saw or if the star eater had knocked her out cold and shoved her into a vat, using her as a giant, world-changing battery, and this was all a hallucination.  
  
She'd managed to swim quite a bit before Waluigi-orb caught her. She could see a battle in the distance as Kamek fought Seth. It was a battle of magic so strong she could feel the darkness around her echo its power. But she recalled the battle in front of the monitors. Kamek was doing to Seth what Waluigi and Daisy had done before. He was distracting the star eater so she could work her magic as khenet.  
  
"Cheat the star eater," the orb informed her as it morphed and stretched.  
  
Suddenly it squished, forcing her downwards at an alarming rate. She wasn't sure where she was going, as everything looked the same inside the star eater, but eventually she was surrounded in light. It was overwhelming, forcing her to shield her eyes with her glowing arm. Pity it didn't protect her when she was suddenly ejected from the darkness and straight onto the floor of the boardroom in Peach's Castle.  
  
"What is that? I do not know!" the doctor exclaimed, leaping from his seat as the golden form of light fell on the floor.  
  
"Ugh, my face...." Daisy groaned, pushing herself up off the floor. She blinked stupidly as her eyes adjusted to the sharp contrast of light from the dark. Looking down at her hands, she nearly leapt in surprise. She still was that odd glowing form she'd obtained while floating in the darkness. So much for the theory she was dreaming or hallucinating. This was real.  
  
"Ohoho, it's the same signature I was picking up earlier!" the professor clapped excitedly, hopping to the ground for his chair. He adjusted his glasses with his thumb and forefinger, staring up at the form as she stood up. "And what are you exactly, sonny?"  
  
She looked down at him, only to realize she wasn't wearing any clothes. She quickly covered herself, picking up a leg in surprise and crossing it in front of the other until it hit her. She was a glowing ball of yellow energy. Untwisting herself, she straightened up proudly, tapping herself on the chest. "I'm Daisy!" Her voice was a bit garbled, hard to discern it was her, but she knew she was still herself, just a glowing blob of herself.  
  
"Ohoho, how'd this happen?" The professor didn't question it was her, just how she'd become such an odd form.  
  
"That damn star eater!" she replied, folding her arms. She'd grit her teeth if she was certain she had any. "He did all this! He got all pissy because we almost beat him and rescued everyone! Everyone was alive and stuck in the walls of his stupid castle on the moon!" She felt like she was recanting a wild, fabricated tale as she spoke, but it was all absolutely true. "I don't know where they are now. I'm not sure if they're still anywhere." Her heart sank at the last part.  
  
"But!" she added. "Fire up that Regurgitator thingamajiggy! I have a plan!"  
  
"Ohoho, sorry to rain on your parade, sonny," the professor countered. "It won't work. There's no strong enough power source."  
  
"Use me," she pointed to herself. "I'm one that gold thingy, that kennit or whatever. Peasley and even that stupid star eater made it sound like I'm a human battery. Use me to restore everything."  
  
The professor and the doctor both stared at her, surprised by her words. "You might not live through it, sonny."  
  
"I don't care anymore!" Daisy fussed. "A world without friends means nothing to me! I'll do whatever it takes, now use my power!"

 

 


	20. The World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Daisy back in the world of light, she professes her desires to save everyone with the Regurgitator 9000. But will her desires be enough when Seth manifests and a battle ensues?

She didn't care anymore. A world without her friends, family, and her people meant nothing. The star eater was determined to destroy the world and recreate it according to some cosmic cycle. Rosalina had never mentioned anything like that before, meaning it was worthless nonsense. Seth was insane and had to be stopped. Who knew how many other worlds he attempted to recreate before her own?  
  
"You're sure about this, sonny?" The old professor looked up at the glowing form of Daisy. He still wasn't entirely sure how she became this way. She babbled on about the star eater in a castle on the moon. It sounded fabricated, but after all that had happened for the last few months, the professor couldn't exactly discount her story as a possible truth.  
  
Daisy nodded confidently. "Kamek and Waluigi didn't sacrifice themselves so that I'd fail after coming this far."  
  
A rumbling in the distance caught their attention. The professor flipped open his DS and poured over the readings. "It looks like the land around us is collapsing, sonny." The screen lit up in numerous places overlaying the map of the Mushroom Kingdom. Each light represented a missing location, one which the star eater had claimed. Earlier the map had only indicated a few lights, but now nearly the entire area had been swallowed whole. Little remained around the castle and Toad Town.  
  
While the science and the readings fascinated him, the professor was now stricken with concern. If the world no longer remained, what could he study? Everything he knew was almost completely gone, as were the people he cared for. He knew the brothers and Princess Peach for years. Their disappearance had been wearing on him, though he had buried that worry underneath countless readings and technological inventions, all for the sake of restoring everything.  
  
But now, as the situation looked bleak, his usual chipper demeanor fell. This truly could be the end of everything.  
  
Daisy placed a hand on his freckled head. "Don't worry. I've got this." She wasn't sure how, but she felt certain she could do it. There were too many people relying on her power, and like hell was she going to disappoint them. This was her chance to fix everything, to show everyone she was a hero too. Everyone had sacrificed so much to get her to this point, and she wasn't going to disappoint them.  
  
The ceiling above them bowed and creaked as the darkness seeped in through the ceiling tiles. "You cannot escape, Khenet," the voice bellowed, bending and warping the still-standing walls around the board room.  
  
"I'm not running, you damn star eater!" Daisy shouted back, shaking her glowing fist as she stepped in front of the professor, shielding him from the star eater's shadows.  
  
The professor quickly understood her intentions, taking several steps back with Doctor Toadley and Toadbert. As E. Gadd stared up at the star eater overtaking the room, he understood for the first time how Luigi felt about ghosts. This star eater was terrifying, possessing a power unlike anyone had ever seen. The creature was here to destroy everything. He could feel his hand holding the DS begin to shake, but he didn't move to stop it. Toadbert clinging to the back of his shirt was shaking too, as he buried his head in E. Gadd's back.  
  
The professor was a scientist. He could explain everything and through understanding, there would be no fear. That's how he saw it, at least. Yet nothing could explain this star eater. It defied the laws of science and physics, warping and changing the world around them as if science was obsolete.  
  
Daisy stood before them as well, another scientific anomaly. Glowing a bright gold with red, turquoise, and green where her heart would be, she stood tall, facing the shadow as it dripped from the ceiling like thick syrup. She curled her fingers into a fist. She couldn't be afraid now. She was the World's last hope.  
  
The drip curved and bent, the end forming a head as it turned to stare at her. "You are brave. I like that. Your power would restore this world as it should be. It will be put to good use."  
  
Daisy stood firm, glaring back at the nebulous face. He was only a few inches from her. She had to think of something. The only real battle experience she had was from when this journey began. She barely knew how to properly fight with a sword, swinging it around like a golf club or a baseball bat. It had worked so far, but now it wouldn't work. She'd lost her physical form and everything that came with it.  
  
Her mind drifted for a moment and she remembered what Prince Peasley had told her. She had the power to shape the world around her. She'd seen that power in action with the crystals on Donut Plains and the trees in Chai.  
  
The shadow snake darted forward. The attack took her by surprise, the impact throwing her backwards, her glowing form flipping over and over until she impacted with the wall behind her.  
  
"Hey that wasn't cool!" she shouted at him as she pushed herself out of the hole in the wall her body had created. Bricks fell from the top of the opening as she left it until the remains of the wall came crashing down to fill the entire thing.  
  
The nebulous snake slithered down from the ceiling more until it reached the ground. The nebulous form shifted back to the form Seth had originally taken, the man with the messy stardust hair and long cloak. "The cosmic Great Year must begin anew and you are the key to doing so. I shan't fail to complete my purpose."  
  
"As if!" she spat back, planting her feet firmly in the ground. She had to think of something. She couldn't rely on anyone bailing her out this time. Seth's presence here could only mean that Kamek and Waluigi had finally been absorbed. She glanced over at the Regurgitator 9000 standing in the corner of the room. She had to buy the professor time to set it up.  
  
Prince Peasley's words echoed in her mind. She had the power of creation and restoration. That meant she could do anything if she put her mind to it, right? She no longer had a corporeal form to constrain her. She could defy the science the professor babbled about. This was like a dream, a very lucid dream, where she could control everything around her. That was how it worked, right? And even if it didn't, she'd be standing there looking like a fool as she searched for more answers.  
  
Seth shifted, drawing his hand from beneath his cloak as he prepared an attack. Daisy moved to do the same, drawing her right hand out in front of her, curling all her fingers but the index one. She pointed her hand at Seth and shouted, "BANG!" At her fingertip manifested a large orb of white light which then shot off in a thick beam directly at Seth. The starborne quickly withdrew his hand, shifting to the side to avoid the attack.  
  
Daisy stared for a moment, impressed that actually did something and it made him move. This power she had, it was greater than anything she ever imagined. It was like playing a video game though the stakes for victory was greater than any game could ever offer. She was playing for the fate of her home, and Daisy hated to lose.  
  
"Professor, get that regurgithingy ready!" Daisy proclaimed, emphatically pushing her hand up her arm as if she were pushing her sleeves up, ready for a dirty street fight. "I'm gonna beat this punk all the way back to the hellhole he came from!"  
  
Seth straightened up, returning to a proper upright position, as he watched the diminutive human scramble across the floor towards some kind of primitive contraption. The regurgithingy, as Daisy had put it, appeared to be the most technologically advanced thing he'd seen on the planet, something possibly worth saving, but the cosmic order had to be restored, the ekpyrosis had to happen. The world had to be reset.  
  
Not seeing the contraption as a particular threat, Seth returned his attention to the true threat to his work, the living khenet battery. "Come, khenet. You will fulfill your purpose."  
  
"I'll fulfill my own purpose!" she shot back, pointing her finger at him once again. She fired off another energy blast, and another and another. Seth was moving more quickly than he had prior, learning that while her power was overwhelming, her technique was clearly lacking.  
  
On the third shot fired, Seth dodged, moving closer and closer on the fourth and fifth until he was nearly in her face. "You must fulfill your cosmic purpose. Do you not wish to create a new world? To create a new life and restart the Great Year?"  
  
"Like hell I do!" Daisy spat back, forming an energy blade with her hand and swinging it recklessly at him, forcing him to leap several feet backwards. "I want this World! It's mine, and I don't want to share it with you!" She stepped forward, swinging again and forcing him back several steps. "I want this one back!"  
  
Her thoughts shifted from the people lodged in the walls of his palace to Peach as Apricot and Ninjetta and Waluigi and even Kamek. Everyone needed saving and restoring, even the koopa troop lodged in the crystal wall. Even they were worth saving. They were part of this world, both good and bad. She easily had the power to wipe them out, to save this world from the persistent global problem of Bowser, but then she'd be no better than Seth. She had to restore it to how it was, or at least something close to it. She made a promise to Kamek to restore Bowser's kingdom and its people. She made a promise to help fight the star eater and restore Sarasaland. She made a silent promise to find Peach, Mario, and Luigi and to bring them all home. She had to simply recreate a home to return to. That all rested on the Regurgitator 9000, and she had to get rid of this star eater before she could use it. She glanced at the professor once more before creating another blade on her other arm and using both to swipe at Seth.  
  
The star eater leapt back several more feet, the last swipe slicing the tail end of his cloak as he moved. He noticed her glancing at the machine every so often. Certainly it wasn't her source of power, but perhaps it was her source of hope. Her power was growing stronger and stronger the more she fought him, her persistent stubbornness to survive fueling her strength. The more she resisted, the less he could fulfill his duty and purpose. He simply would have to crush her hopes until she could resist no more. He regretted separating her from her corporeal form. The move had only made her stronger.  
  
Daisy swiped at him again, firing off a few shots in between movements just to keep him on his toes. She didn't know anything about strategy. That was Ninjetta's thing. That ninji did so much for her, and she probably didn't appreciate Ninjetta as much as she should. She'd grown so accustomed to that black hopping creature always fussing and being there when she needed her, that Daisy had forgotten how lonely it was without her.  
  
Daisy wasn't sure what had become of her. She'd weaseled into the control room and stopped the world engine. Daisy had thought that would end everything, but instead, it only seemed to create a bigger problem. No matter. She'd deal with it somehow and bring Ninjetta back. She'd bring everyone back.  
  
"This ends now," Seth declared, stepping back one last time before shifting his attention.  
  
"Yeah yeah," Daisy dismissed his declaration. "You said that before and look where were are now!"  
  
Seth frowned sharply, withdrawing his hand from his cloak. "Your hopes will be crushed, and you will no longer have a reason to fight." The shadows in the ceiling followed his silent command, prying apart the ceiling tiles and reaching downward, quickly overtaking the Regurgitator 9000 and swallowing the professor with it. "You will fulfill your purpose."

 


	21. Nothing left

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the threat of destruction imminent, can Daisy find a means to stop the star eater or die in his hands?

Daisy watched in horror as the last hope for the world was quickly consumed. "PROFESSOR!!" she screamed, pain and despair lacing her voice. She took her attention away from the battle, distracted by the sudden hole forming in her heart. Without the Regurgitator 9000, she had no hopes of restoring the people and the world around her. Everything she'd worked for, everything her allies did as well, was all gone in a second.  
  
She felt a pain shoot up and down her glowing body. She moved to place a hand where her heart should be but felt something foreign instead. Seth had approached quickly when she wasn't looking, forming a blade with the shadows at his command, and driving it straight through her heart. "H-how... How can you finish your so-called bologna duty if I'm dead?"  
  
Seth shook his head. How foolish and ignorant the people of this world were. Had they accomplished nothing within their cosmic Great Year? Was there nothing worth keeping? "I only need your energy. Your form matters not."  
  
"My form...." The words struck Daisy as rather odd. She had been turned into a great glowing ball of energy in the shape of what she once was. She didn't even sound the same and she could manipulate her form to create bursts of energy and blades merely by imagining it. What was she now anyway? Just energy?  
  
"By boogity...." Toadbert gasped, clinging to Doctor Toadleys' robe. He was terrified, his legs shaking as he attempted to stand upright. Not only had the star eater overtaken the sky, he'd invaded the castle and killed both the professor and Daisy. "This is the end, isn't it?"  
  
"Is it truly the end?" the doctor echoed. "I don't believe so. You don't give the princess enough credit."  
  
Daisy glanced over to the doctor. She had expected some ominous words of the end of the world from him. "Have you seen some sort of vision, doctor?" she inquired, ignoring Seth's attempts to impale her again. She'd ceased breathing but she still was alive somehow. She really was just energy, a golden light literally persisting in a world of darkness.  
  
"Have I seen anything?" the doctor shook his head. "I have not. This is a professional opinion."  
  
Daisy stared at the doctor for a moment. He was a doctor specializing in medicine and fortunes. He'd helped the brothers countless times, offering fortunes and readings as well as helping the people of Toad Town with ailments and remedies. He was odd and difficult to understand with his way of answering his own questions, but she'd never once heard him voice a professional opinion. She pondered the possibility that he knew what she had become or that she simply was doing as he'd said, giving her credit for her own abilities. He had more faith in her than she'd had during half her journey. She wasn't about to let that faith be misguided.  
  
She turned back to Seth to see him generate another arm from underneath his cloak and ram it through her heart. She felt the pain shoot up her arms, but it was fleeting. She was stronger than this. Even Luigi had said so. She was always the strong one.  
  
She reached forward, wrapping her glowing hand around the blades which impaled her. She felt the warmth around her hand again. It was the power of recreation, the power of green she had gained in her love and friendship with Luigi. If the star eater could destroy, she could counter and create. She closed her eyes, imagining things and letting her creative mind run wild. "Luigi, this one's for you!"  
  
The dark blades driven through her body reacted to her touch. The transformation started at her hands, the green power of renewal heeding her call. Quickly the green power emanated from her hands, shooting to the tips of the blades on the back of her body up to the base of Seth's arms.  
  
The sudden surge of power caused the starborne to reel back and withdraw the attack, separating himself from what he had created. He watched as she turned the darkness of space he commanded into a green light then disappeared, repairing the hole the attack had created in her heart.  
  
Daisy looked at herself, almost shocked it worked. But what did she truly expect? This was a battle of cosmic proportions, something that Rosalina would enjoy babbling on about as they watched another meteor shower.  
  
Of course, Rosalina. She represented the power of restoration, the power to recreate a new world. "Okay, this one's for you, Rosie!" She stepped backwards, pressing her hand against the wall. The power of turquoise manifested at her touch and overtook the crumbled wall. Before their eyes, the wall rebuilt itself, the bricks appearing as they always did, every time Daisy came to visit. She recreated the portrait on the wall as best she could. It was crooked and the king in the painting looked like he got hit by a tree stump, but it was the best she could remember.  
  
She could feel a new power grow within her, much greater than the power of just the three friends representing the cosmic colors. There were others too, giving her all their strength from somewhere within the shadows. She felt the warmth she got when Peach hugged her, greeting her everytime she visited the castle. She felt the odd sense of hope the wigglers gave her when they gave her the satchel of turnips and odds and ends. She felt the relief of the survivors she first met in Birabuto. And strangely, she felt the fiery strength Kamek had when he fought the star eater on the moon. She wasn't alone. They were all here.  
  
"How can someone like you exist?" Seth seethed. At his silent command, the nebulous shadows attempted to overtake Daisy and restrain her but the light she was emitting was too bright. They couldn't even touch the wall she'd restored.  
  
Daisy had surpassed all expectations. Seth knew there were powerful sources on this planet. He'd come here to gain the power he needed to fuel a world engine like none had ever seen. He was determined to be the best starborne, to restart the cosmic Year in a way that no other had ever seen. He desired to create the perfect world, one even he would live in, but to do that, this world would have to wither away.  
  
But Daisy, that enigmatic human, countered every move he could make. She was a mess of a creature, strong but barely capable of wielding her own weapon. Had her power truly grown? Had the loss of everything and the presence of nothing truly fueled her stubbornness and persistence?  
  
"Are you really that stupid?" Daisy questioned, planting her hand on the floor. The ground reacted to her touch, reforming the tiles of pink and white which decorated the castle floor. A long area rug wove itself across the floor. It was a bit crooked but it was what she remembered sitting along the boardroom floor when they'd first gathered. "This isn't my power! It's everyone with me! My friends, my people, the love of my life, even my enemies. We're all reuniting together to stop you and your damn plan. This is our planet, and you're gonna leave!"  
  
The restoration of the floor caused Seth to jump into the air, floating towards the ceiling where the nebulous shadows persisted. "You have nothing left."  
  
"You really are that dumb," Daisy shook her head, standing back up. "Aren't you even watching? With the power everyone's giving me, we'll all restore this world to what it once was."  
  
Seth reeled back in anger, withdrawing a newly formed arm from his cloak to prepare for another attack. Swinging back, he felt resistance in his movements. He glared back at his arm to find a turquoise form made completely of energy wrapping her arms around him. "Mfk3t."  
  
"Rosie!" Daisy exclaimed, relieved to see even the form of her lost friend.  
  
"This ends now, starborne," she declared. "Your quest to reset the Great Year must come to an end. That cycle has long since been abolished. The worlds will persist as they are."  
  
"Nonsense, Mfk3t!" he countered angrily. "I will complete my purpose."  
  
"I am the guardian of this cosmos," Rosalina hissed. "You have no place here." Her form grew brighter, the shape of her dress and crown coming into view. "Daisy, I give you my full power. Fix this. Bring everything back."  
  
"Leave it to me!" Daisy proclaimed. She could feel the life coming back to her, fueled by the hope of everyone lost and the encouraging words of her galactic friend. She placed her hands on the ground, feeling the cosmic power surge through her. She began emitting a golden light which first restored the boardroom, placing the chairs back underneath the newly reformed table and restoring the professor and the Regurgitator 9000. The light spread outside the castle, restoring the houses and people of Toad Town then the busy streets of Fortune Street. The shops stood back up, the shoppers placed back on the streets. The place wasn't perfect, but she built what she could remember, restoring the land to nearly what it once was.  
  
The power felt overwhelming, suddenly culminating into a huge burst of light. The sky returned, lined with happy clouds and the usual cranky sun. Trees sprang up in the fields and water returned to the lakes. Sarasaland resurfaced, building each kingdom piece by piece. Distant lands returned. The BeanBean Kingdom's Starfields sprang up, the land dazzling like a starry sky as it once did. Bowser's kingdom returned, though with strangely less lava as Daisy hadn't quite remembered where it all was.  
  
Kamek and Waluigi fell from the ceiling, restored to their normal forms. Mario and Luigi returned, Luigi clinging to his brother for dear life. Wario and Starlow fell on top of Waluigi with a heavy thud. Birdo tumbled forward, landing at the doctor's feet. Peach returned as well, dressed in her usual pink gown. Rosalina manifested still holding the star eater's arm.  
  
Seth himself had been reduced to a corporeal form of a man with shaggy brown hair and a long black cloak. "What have you done?!"  
  
"The power you sought has returned you to your normal form," Rosalina informed him, still gripping his arm. Several Luma fell from her sleeves, hopping around and huddling behind Mario. "Now it is you who has nothing left."  
  
The light in the room finally subsided. Daisy had vanished, her engagement ring clattering to the ground where she once stood.

 


	22. Stars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The World is now restored, the people, the lands, the life within it. But where is Daisy? Will she be able to enjoy the world she recreated?

_"Do you ever find yourself looking up at the sky and just wondering?"  
  
Rosalina glanced over at Daisy. It seemed like a silly question to ask the cosmic guardian. Then again, the two of them standing on the balcony of Daisy's castle in their pajamas was also pretty silly. Rosalina had never owned pajamas before. Daisy loaned her a set, a tank top with a pair of rather soft pants decorated with orange flowers. The luma floated around Rosalina, confused as it wasn't her usual attire or even colors.  
  
"Look, look!" Daisy pointed up to the sky excitedly. "Shooting stars!"  
  
"The meteor shower has started," Rosalina noted. She'd seen them from among the stars many times, but the meteors really did look much more impressive from on the ground.  
  
"They're so pretty!" Ninjetta exclaimed, hopping up and down beside her liege. "Did you make a wish on them, princess?"  
  
"A wish?" Rosalina echoed in surprise.  
  
"You bet, Rosie!" Daisy exclaimed. "You make a wish on shooting stars, and one day it could come true!"  
  
"They're just rocks interacting with the planet's atmosphere," Rosalina protested. "They're not really stars at all."  
  
"Aw, come on, Rosie! Don't be so sour!" Daisy exclaimed, swinging her arm around Rosalina's shoulders as she pointed up at the sky with her other hand. "Look, there's another one! Make a wish!"  
  
Rosalina watched the meteor Daisy had indicated. She had to admit, they did actually look like stars shooting across the night sky. She didn't see a point in wishing, but Daisy's excitement had caused her to actually wonder what she would wish on a shooting star. "I don't really have a wish."  
  
"Aw, come on, Rosie!" Daisy protested. "Surely there's something you want!"  
  
Rosalina glanced at Daisy. Before she would've wished for friends or at least someone to spend time with. Sure, she loved her luma and their company, but at times, she longed for a friendship she thought she could never have. And as she stood on the balcony in Daisy's pajamas, she realized something. "My wish has already come true."  
  
_The sensation of pain came rushing back to her quickly. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment before opening them widely. Day had given way to night and stars dotted the sky once again. The moon hung low on the horizon, casting a dim glow across her and everything around her.  
  
A small flash of light streaked across the sky. Daisy watched it until the light faded away. "A meteor." The sky looked like that night she invited Rosalina over for a sleepover. Had she recreated the sky so it would look like that memory?  
  
Daisy lay in the grass, unable to move. She felt exhausted and sore, like she'd just run a marathon across the kingdom. She could feel the ground beneath her, the grass prodding her in the back as she lay. Her arms and legs felt bare, but when she peered down, she was wearing the remains of her yellow outfit she'd torn up right after Peach sacrificed herself. "Well, Rosie," she spoke to no one in particular. "It looks like  _my_ wish came true this time."  
  
The world had been restored. It was her wish on the dying stars Seth had swallowed whole. She used up all her energy for one last chance to fix everything. She didn't even have the energy to keep her eyes open or smile anymore, but it was the thought that counted. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, feeling the rise and fall of her chest.  
  
 _"She's here! I found her!"_  
  
Sounds of people trodding in the grass filled her weak ears, echoing around. That voice, it was Ninjetta's. She was hopping frantically in the grass, her small feet pounding against the ground as she moved.  
  
 _"Oh my! Daisy! Please be alive!"_  
  
Daisy breathed again, though shallowly now. Two wishes in one day? Boy the shooting stars really were listening to her. She knew they were just rocks getting absorbed in the atmosphere, but it was always fun to wish on them.  
  
 _"She's still breathing, Princess, but barely. We have to get her to the doctor quickly!"  
  
_ Someone picked her up, cradling her head in his arms. She didn't have to look to know who it was. She wanted to lean into him, tell him it was okay and that they could now have their wedding, that they could live happily ever after with Mario and Peach and all of Sarasaland. But she couldn't even open her eyes. She simply hung there, barely a shell of her usual energetic self. She wasn't sure she would even last long enough to make it to the doctor's. How long had she been gone and where was she even? It didn't matter. Everything was okay now.  
  
"Don't worry, Daisy. Now it's my turn to rescue you." Luigi smiled down at Daisy. She had a few inches in height on him, but he still held her in his arms regardless. The thought of losing her was devastating.  
  
She wanted to smile at him. She'd never heard him speak such brave words. It made her heart pitter patter, but just a bit as her heart was tired too.  
  
Rosalina paused to stare up at the sky. It was just like that sleepover party months and months ago, the first time anyone had told her about wishes or watched shooting stars with her. Rosalina found it odd that Daisy would restore her form out here in front of her castle under the night sky full of shooting stars.  
  
Daisy had gone missing for three days after she used the combined power to restore the World as it once was. Details were missing here and there, along with the occasional crooked building, but the world was close enough that no one truly complained. Luigi cried the entire time, fearing that Daisy was long lost, but Rosalina assured him that Daisy was far too stubborn to not survive. Search parties spread out to find any signs of Daisy, searching for signs of her at her favorite places. Only at sunset three days after the battle had Daisy finally manifested, returning to her home where she had made many of her greatest memories.  
  
Daisy finally awoke once again, now staring up at the ceiling in her bedroom. Sunlight poured in from the balcony, a light breeze pushing the curtains back and forth. She felt life pouring back in her once again. She stirred a bit, finding that Luigi had fallen asleep with his hand intertwined with hers as he leaned against the edge of the bed, sitting on the floor.  
  
She sat up. Every fiber in her entire body felt sore as she moved, but the smell of breakfast caught her attention. She peered at Luigi, wondering if she should wake him. He looked so peaceful sleeping there, clinging to her and the bed as if he feared she would never wake.  
  
She nudged him. "Luigi, let's get some breakfast."  
  
He stirred, laughing. He was relieved she was awake and the first thing she wanted was breakfast. She pushed through the soreness, taking to her feet and not caring her hair was a mess. Practically dragging him down the stairs, Daisy made her way to the dining room to find many of her friends had gathered. A huge breakfast lay spread out on the table.  
  
"I'm not dreaming all this, right?" Daisy frowned sharply. She had to ask. After everything she'd been though, she had to make sure this was real.  
  
"Ohoho, of course it is, sonny!" the professor peered over his large stack of pancakes.  
  
"We've been setting up a breakfast every day, hoping you'd wake and join us," Peach smiled brightly. "I know you never miss breakfast!"  
  
"Aw man," Daisy rubbed the back of her head. "A hero's breakfast. Just what I needed!" She grinned stupidly. If this were a dream, it was a damn good one and she didn't want to wake up. Sitting at the table with everyone and tasting the food, she was certain it was actually reality. It was how she wanted it, truly. Everything she fought for, every ounce of energy she spent was all for moments like this when everyone was together and happy.  
  
Ninjetta sat at the table, barely touching her meal as she sorted through some letters and mail. Daisy reached over, plucking one of the letters from the ninji's hands. "Weddin infitasun," she read the words with a mouth full of pancake. She gulped down the pancake quickly when what she held in her hands began to sink in. "Oh man! We gotta send these out and reschedule!"  
  
"I've got everything taken care of, Princess," the ninji reassured her liege.  
  
"What would I do without you!" Daisy laughed, setting the invitation back down on the table. She glanced at the guest list for a moment before picking it up and reading all the names. Picking up Ninjetta's pencil, she scribbled in a name at the bottom of the list before handing the clipboard back to the ninji.  
  
Ninjetta nearly leapt from her seat. "Waluigi?!"  
  
"Well I kinda owe the guy," Daisy shrugged. It was the least she could do for him, really. He'd stuck by her throughout most of the journey, even helping her at very critical points. The journey had really showed her that Waluigi had a human side buried somewhere underneath, one that fought to bring the world back and rescue Wario. If it hadn't been for him with her, she quite possibly wouldn't have made it as far as she did.  
  
The sounds of an airship quickly filled the quiet morning air, accompanied by a familiar boisterous roar of laughter. Daisy and Mario quickly leapt from their seats while Luigi leapt under the table. Kamek flew in with several magikoopa through the open balcony window then quickly stopped when he saw the entire gathering before him.  
  
"Alright, enough!" Daisy pushed up the sleeves of her pajamas and grabbed something off the table. She stomped over to Kamek and stared him right in the face before shoving something at him.  
  
The magikoopa blinked, surprised by her actions. He plucked the small paper from her grip, reading it. "Wedding invitation?" he read it aloud, looking up at her through his thick glasses.  
  
Daisy shrugged. "I kinda owe ya after what you did when that star eater overtook everything in that cosmic nebula goop or whatever it was."  
  
"Cosmic star bed," he corrected her. The magikoopa behind him exchanged glances. Kamek cleared his throat and the magikoopa quickly stiffened, regaining their intimidating demeanors while perched on their brooms.  
  
"And you owe me to show up after what I did," Daisy added sharply.  
  
Kamek paused. He couldn't deny she had a point. If it hadn't been for her khenet power, the world would be refashioned as the star eater had seen fit, not restored to what it was originally before the creature had ever appeared. "This changes nothing, you know."  
  
"Wouldn't want it to," Daisy replied.  
  
"After this  _formality_  is over," Kamek tucked the invitation into his cloak, "I will continue with His Nastiness's orders and abduct you."  
  
Daisy blinked. "Me?" She suddenly realized she had become the most coveted person in the World.  
  
"Away, troops!" Kamek commanded with a wave of his hand. The magikoopa troop turned and flew out the balcony window.  
  
"Okay, bring it on!" Daisy shouted at them, smirking as she brandished a fist towards the window.  
  
Kamek paused briefly, turning to look back at her. He pushed his glasses up his nose, then nodded before flying off.  
  
She smirked, folding her arms confidently. Suddenly Bowser was now after her, but who wouldn't be? She  _had_  the power to recreate the world. She wasn't sure if she could anymore, but the thought was entertaining.  
  
She knew she'd done the right thing in restoring the world as best she could to what it was before. This was the world she had fought mercilessly to save.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading my first Super Mario story! So now, the symbolism for everything.
> 
>  
> 
> The Great Year and the cycle of the cosmos.  
> This is a Greek stoic belief that there is a cycle in the universe. A Great Year in the cosmos (note: much longer than an Earth Year) begins and ends. The year begins with paligenesis and ends with ekpyrosis. The cycle rebuilds the cosmos anew and starts everything over.
> 
>  
> 
> The colors  
> The colors are all Ancient Egyptian. As Ancient Egypt had a lot more vowels than we do in English, sometimes numbers are used to denote pronunciation, which is guessed anyway, as the written language had no vowels. Ancient Egyptians were huge on color symbology and believed colors actually held magical aspects and powers. They put these colors in art and jewelry symbolically as well.
> 
> W3d. the 3 is somewhat of a combination of an A and E sound. This is the color green. Green was symbolic of growing things and new life, like with plants. "To do green things" meant to do good. Green also represented healing.
> 
> Mfk3t. Turquoise was the most valuable green stone. It represented the the goddess of the sky, Hathor, who was also known as the Lady of Turquoise. Turquoise itself represented the inundation, which was when the Nile flooded and brought water and silt into the area. The color was said to represent rebirth.
> 
> Dshr. Red was considered a very powerful color, both hot and dangerous. It was the color of blood and fire. It represented life and destruction. The sun was often colored red in art and royalty would wear red to try to invoke the power the sun could give.
> 
> Khenet. Gold represented everything that was eternal and imperishable. It was not only a color of the sun but the color of the gods themselves. The gods were often painted with yellow skin, symbolizing eternity and persistence.
> 
>  
> 
> Seth, the starborne  
> Seth is named after an alternate spelling of the Egyptian god, Set, the god of storms, violence, disorder, and the deserts. He wasn't really a god to be ignored. He was part of the necessary balance in the world and helped defend Ra, the sun, against the serpent Apep during his journey underground during the night.
> 
> I chose Seth instead of Set to not be so obvious with my symbology. Initially the story had only entailed Egyptian color symbology, pulling in the Greek Stoicism a bit later on in the story to round off Seth's initiatives, drive, and purpose. His initial purpose was something a bit more selfish and somewhat sinister, but in the end, he evolved into something determined and morally ambiguous. He's carrying out an ancient purpose he thought he had to fulfill. Daisy got in the way and defied everything he knew and understood.


End file.
